


Quest For Camelot

by tabbytabbytabby



Series: Sterek Prompts [39]
Category: Merlin (TV), Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alive Elyan, Alive Lancelot, Arthur Knows About Merlin's Magic, Arthur Pendragon Is King, Crossover, Derek Hale & Theo Raeken Friendship, Established Cora Hale/Lydia Martin, Established Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, F/F, First Kiss, First Time, Fluff and Smut, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Love Confessions, M/M, Magic Revealed, Matchmaking, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rating for later chapters, Sheriff Stilinski's Name is John, Smut, Spark Stiles Stilinski
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-20
Updated: 2019-03-01
Packaged: 2019-03-07 10:09:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 28,043
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13432485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tabbytabbytabby/pseuds/tabbytabbytabby
Summary: In a land of myth and a time of magic...Members of the Beacon Hills pack suddenly find themselves thrust back in time with the purpose of helping Merlin stop a threat that is approaching the walls of Camelot. They have no choice but to adapt and try and fit in with this unfamiliar world. Some are more successful than others. It becomes more complicated when they discover the beast that has been terrorizing the kingdom is someone familiar. Especially when they realize that the beast might not be the real threat at all.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> For [Hopira](http://hopira.tumblr.com/) who won my fanfic giveaway and prompted: "So, Derek, Stiles, Theo, Liam, Lydia and Cora are searching information about something, and suddenly they end up in Merlin times, because Merlin was trying to find a way to deal with *insert supernatural creature* and they know how to kill the thing, so the universe sort of send them back in time to help Merlin and Arthur, once they defeat it, the universe sends them back to present day immediately. Don’t care if they get together during the fic or if they are already together. Btw, ‘they’ meaning, Sterek, Thiam, Corydia and Merthur. Because why choose XD"
> 
> Woo okay. So this is an endeavor. I've been having fun with it though. Hopefully you like it <3  
> This has not been beta read so any mistakes are my own. If you see any please point them out and I'll get them fixed.
> 
> Just a note about the timeline: This is post-series for Teen Wolf. I imagine this taking place somewhere around season 4 of Merlin. Arthur is King. His relationship with Gwen never happened. Lancelot is alive.

  
  
[Banner by E_wolfwisegirl](https://ewolfwitchwisegirl.tumblr.com/post/172682735201/quest-for-camelot-a-merlinteen-wolf-fic-by-the)

 

By now no one is even surprised when they find themselves facing yet another witch. It’s more annoying than anything at this point. Stiles, Derek, Theo, Liam, Lydia, Cora, and Jenna are in the preserve trying to track the witch. Stiles and Derek seem happy to talk as they go, their joined hands swinging between them. Lydia and Cora are almost as bad as they walk behind Theo and Liam.

And Theo… well Theo is just doing his best not to be so hyper aware of Liam’s… well Liam’s _everything_. It’s easier said than done. He can feel Liam’s eyes on him every so often and it’s making his skin crawl, not necessarily in a bad way either. He likes having Liam’s attention, but right now it’s making it hard for him to focus.

To make things even more interesting Jenna has decided she wants to come along and is happily talking to Cora and Lydia. Liam had given her a talk before they left the house about staying back if they found the witch, saying that he didn’t want his mother turned into a toad. Jenna had just rolled her eyes and told Liam she was more than capable of handling herself. Theo doesn’t doubt that.

They’re nearing a clearing when Theo feels it, a sudden shift in the energy around them. He turns to Liam eyes worried, “Liam…”

Liam glances at him briefly before looking straight ahead again. His posture is tense. “I know. I feel it too.”

“Everyone just remain calm,” Derek mutters. “We need to keep our heads.”

“Yeah the last thing we need is for any of you to wolf out and try and attack the witch,” Stiles says, shooting a look at Liam. He raises his hands in a placating manner when Theo growls. “Down boy. I said any of you. I wasn’t pointing any fingers.”

“I don’t like this,” Lydia says. “Something doesn’t feel right about this place. Maybe we should…”

She doesn’t get to finish her sentence because a loud boom sounds and then the ground is shaking underneath them. Theo instinctively reaches out for Liam and then Jenna, needing to make sure they’re safe.

“What’s happening?” Jenna asks.

Theo shakes his head. He really has no idea. Apart from the ground shaking, the air is practically rippling around them. It’s over not even a minute later, leaving them all standing there staring around the clearing in bewilderment.

“What was the point in that?” Stiles asks. “Scare us with some theatrics? She didn’t even do anything.”

Theo looks around, brow furrowing in confusion. They might not have moved physically but everything looks completely different around them. Even the air smells different, cleaner in a way.

“Something did happen,” Theo says.

“What?” Stiles asks, turning to face him. “We’re in the same spot. We didn’t even move.”

“We’re not in the same spot though,” Theo says, gesturing around him.

“He’s right,” Derek says. “Look around. _Really_ look. This isn’t the same place.”

“It might not even be the same time,” Jenna says.

Liam turns to his mother, “What makes you say that?”

“The trees.”

“The trees?” Liam asks, “You think we time traveled because of the trees?”

Lydia rolls her eyes, “Your Mom is right, Liam. There are a lot of trees. And far more untouched land than we would have anywhere in our time.”

“How is this possible?” Stiles asks, sounding close to hysterics. He sags a little when Derek places a hand on his shoulder.

“Think not on the how but the _why_ ,” A voice speaks, echoing through the trees.

Theo reaches out, taking hold of Liam’s arm when he hears him growl. He shoots a worried in look in his direction and isn’t the least bit surprised to find he’s shifted, eyes darting around the area as he tries to find the source of the voice.

“What does that mean?” Liam asks, anger practically radiating off of him. “Why are we here? _When_ are we?”

“All will be answered. You will find all that you need in the letter at your feet. It will tell you what you need to complete your quest,” The voice says.

“Our quest?” Stiles asks. “Our quest for what?”

“For Camelot.”

Derek snorts, moving to pick up the letter. “Camelot. Sure.”

“Is Camelot actually real?” Jenna asks, eyes alight with excitement. She looks around the clearing as if she expects Arthur himself to pop out and greet her. Theo understands. One thing he learned when he moved in with the Geyer’s was Jenna’s love for Arthurian Legend.

“It’s a legend Mom,” Liam tells her. “You know that.”

“Well werewolves aren’t supposed to be real either,” Jenna points out.

“She has you there,” Cora says, speaking for the first time since they got here.

Theo watches as Derek reads through the letter, lips twitching slightly. His curiosity gets the better of him so he finds himself holding out his hand for the letter when Derek is done.

“Sir Theodore,” Derek says, inclining his head.

Theo raises an eyebrow but doesn’t say anything, choosing to skim through the letter instead. He understands Derek’s behavior when he finds their supposed titles. He does a mock bow, eyes alight with mirth as he addresses first Derek and then Liam, “Your Majesty, Your Highness.”

“What the hell Theo?” Liam asks, snatching the letter out of his hands. “Why does Derek get to be King?”

“At least you're a prince,” Theo points out. He shoots a look at Stiles who narrows his eyes.

“What does that mean?” Stiles asks, reaching for the letter. “What? What the hell? Why am I a servant?”

“I imagine there’s a reason Stiles,” Lydia tells him.

“Yeah well, _you’re_ a maidservant at least. That makes me feel slightly better.”

Lydia narrows her eyes, snatching the letter from Stiles and quickly reading through it. “This is ridiculous. And completely missing the point as to why we’re here.”

“Because there’s a supernatural creature and Merlin needs help dealing with it,” Stiles says. “Sounds easy enough.”

“We don’t even know what the supernatural creature is,” Theo points out.

“It can’t be that different than what we’re used to. Right?”

“Magic is more common in this time,” Lydia tells him. “While it may be banned in Camelot, it’s still something that was once used freely and most likely still is in other kingdoms. There’s no telling what sort of creatures are lurking around here.”

“But if you all were brought here it’s obviously because they think you can find a way to defeat it, right?” Jenna asks.

“Let’s hope so,” Stiles says, “and let’s hope we can pull off this whole charade or we’re screwed.”

“How are we supposed to pose as people from this time dressed like this?” Theo asks, pulling at his t-shirt. “These clothes are a dead giveaway we don’t belong here.”

“Fear not,” the strange voice sounds again. “Your clothes will be fixed. You just need to play your parts, and help save Camelot.”

“Save it?” Liam asks. “Save it from what?”

“It’s downfall.”

“Because that’s not cryptic at all,” Stiles mutters.

“It doesn’t matter,” Derek says. “We need to get our stories straight.”

“And fast,” Theo says, eyes drifting to where he can hear the sound of horses approaching in the distance. “Someone’s coming.”

“But our clothes….” Liam begins only to stop abruptly when he looks down and sees he’s no longer in the jeans and t-shirt he had on before but a pair of loose fitting breeches and a dark blue tunic. Theo can’t help but think it’s the perfect color. It brings out his eyes nicely. Glancing around he sees the others outfits have been swapped as well.

“Whatever happens, you two stick by me,” Theo says, glancing first at Jenna then at Liam.

“We shouldn’t look like we’re ready for a fight,” Derek tells them. “We’re just supposed to be a party on our way to Camelot. The letter said Arthur was expecting us.”

“And we were supposedly attacked on our way,” Liam nods. “Right.”

They don’t have time to discuss anything else before a group of about 5 horses are breaking through the trees and coming to a stop in front of them. Leading the group is a blonde man in his mid-twenties. Theo assumes he must be Arthur. He certainly has a royal air about him, not that Theo _knows_ what that looks like per se. He just figures this would be it.

There’s dark haired man to his right, wearing a red tunic and what looks like a blue scarf. Except it looks more like a bandanna. He’s sure it has a name, something tells him that Jenna and Liam probably know what it’s called. The other three men must be Arthur’s knights.

“Is everything alright here?” Arthur asks, glancing around at the group. Theo can’t help but notice the dark haired man on the horse next to him eyeing their party warily. This must be Merlin then. Although he’s a bit younger than Theo would have guessed.

Derek steps forward, his posture as perfect as his demeanor, “My name is Derek Hale. This is my brother Prince Liam, and my sister Princess Cora.”

“Ah yes,” Arthur says, jumping down from his horse and walking towards the group. “I’ve been expecting you. Your party is smaller than I imagined.”

“We ran into some trouble on the road,” Derek says, face a perfect mask of sadness. “We lost a few. As well as our horses. We were lucky to escape with our lives.”

“Bandits?” Merlin asks.

“We’re not sure. It’s not like anything we’ve seen before,” Theo admits. It’s not a lie. None of this is like anything they’ve seen.

“And you are?” Arthur asks.

“This is Sir Theo,” Derek says, “one of my best knights.”

Theo appreciates the praise but he also hates it. He doesn’t know what he’ll do if he’s expected to prove himself. He’s at least held a sword, but his experience is sorely lacking compared to the knights of his time.

Arthur nods but Theo can tell his eyes have drifted elsewhere. He’s startled to find his attention focused on Jenna. Arthur steps forward taking her hand in his and brings it to his lips, his eyes never leaving hers. “Who might you be?”

Theo’s even more confused when Jenna blushes, “Jenna, Sire.”

“Are you a Princess Jenna?” Arthur asks, giving her what Theo can only describe as a smolder. “You look like a princess.”

The whole interaction makes Theo’s hackles rise. King or not, Theo can’t just allow someone to ogle Jenna like that. He’s about to open his mouth and tell Arthur off when a hand on his shoulder stops him. Liam leans in, breath ghosting across his face as he speaks low enough for only Theo and possibly Derek and Cora to hear. “Don’t cause a scene. She can handle herself.”

“I am not a princess, Your Majesty,” Jenna says, her voice soft but firm. “I am a mother of 3 and I am married.” Her next words come out quiet, low enough that anyone who isn’t standing right in front of her and without supernatural hearing wouldn’t be able to hear. “I believe we both know you are interested in someone else, Sire.”

Arthur’s eyes widen when her gaze flicks to Merlin and back. He quickly composes himself, clearing his throat and running a hand down his cape, “We are pleased to have you all in Camelot. We can spare a few horses for the ladies.”

“There’s no need Your Majesty,” Lydia says, smiling over at the King. “I don’t mind walking.”

Theo knows she most likely just doesn’t want to pretend to know how to ride a horse. The only one that’s probably been on a horse is Liam, and that had been out of necessity. He doubts Liam learned much about riding a horse from his short time on one.

“If you’re sure,” Arthur says, looking the group over. “We’re not too far from Camelot. Just through those trees and over the hill.”

“Walking really shouldn’t be a problem,” Derek assures him. “Some of them could use a good walk.”

He directs this last remark at Stiles who lets out an indignant squawk. Theo can tell Stiles wants to argue and tell him off but he holds his tongue. It wouldn’t do for a servant to sass his king. He has no doubt that Stiles will let Derek have it when they’re alone.

The group sets off through the trees and makes their way towards Camelot. Arthur stays in the back with their party, talking with Derek. Derek, for his part, handles it pretty well. He chats easily with Arthur, only revealing a little bit of information before shifting the focus back to Arthur.

Theo feels eyes on him and looks over to see Merlin watching him. He expects Merlin to look away when Theo meets his gaze but he doesn’t. Theo raises an eyebrow at Merlin who simply raises one back.

“Merlin, can you quit glowering at our guests?” Arthur asks, his tone a mixture of amusement and annoyance.

“I’m not glowering,” Merlin says, but he finally looks away from Theo in order to look at Arthur. He adds on a quick “sire” at the end as if it’s just an afterthought. Theo has to wonder just how comfortable these two must be with each other if Merlin can so easily forget the proper way to address his king.

“Don’t mind Merlin.” One of the knights appears at Theo’s side, shooting him an easy grin. “He’s a little wary of new people. He’ll come around.”

Theo nods, “Understandable. Have you known Merlin long?”

The knight shrugs, “A few years. He’s the reason I’m a knight. I never had much fondness for kings, but Merlin got me to give Arthur a chance to prove himself. And he has. I’m Gwaine.”

Theo smiles, shaking the hand Gwaine holds out. He seems more easy going and far less suspicious than some of the others. Theo can’t help but laugh when Gwaine starts telling him about his most recent trip to the tavern.

He hears a growl from behind him when Gwaine leans on his shoulder as he tells his tale. He doesn’t need to look behind him to know it’s Liam. He’d recognize that growl anywhere. It’s the _why_ that confuses him. Surely Liam can’t think Gwaine is a threat.

He doesn’t have much time to think on it because soon they’re breaking through the trees and coming upon a hill. Just as Arthur said, Camelot is there. Theo feels his breath leave him momentarily. It’s unlike anything he’s ever seen. The castle is huge, towering over the small town below it.

Before now he hadn’t had a chance to think about the fact that he was going to actually be stepping foot into Camelot. It’s a little surreal. He glances at his companions and sees varying looks of shock and awe on their faces. Whatever doubts he had before disappear. They really have traveled in time. They’re in Camelot, and apparently it’s up to them to save it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Kudos/Comments make my day <3  
> This is only my second time writing for Merlin and the first time with it actually taking place in Camelot so apologies if things seem a little off.  
> [My tumblr](http://tabbytabbytabby.tumblr.com/)


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter is from Stiles’ perspective though we do see the others around quite a bit

“This is pretty amazing,” Derek whispers as he looks around the packed courtyard as they make their way up to the castle. “We’re actually in Camelot. We just met King Arthur. Can you believe it?”

Stiles grins over at him, “You’re such a nerd. I love it.”

“You can’t tell me you’re not excited,” Derek says, glancing over at Stiles. “We’ve time travelled. We’ve met an actual king. And knights. We met Lancelot Stiles. _Lancelot._ And for the time being I’m king. Wait… is that what this is about? Are you upset about being a servant?”

Stiles rolls his eyes, “Believe it or not, no. I know it’s so that I can get close to Merlin. Someone has to.”

“And I’m King because I’m supposed to get close to Arthur?”

“Apparently so. Seems like you two hit it off pretty well already. Him and Cora too,” Stiles says, eyes drifting to where Cora and Arthur are chatting happily.

“Shit,” Derek groans. “There’s no telling what she’s saying to him.”

Stiles laughs when Derek makes his way up to Cora and Arthur. Arthur smiles, clapping Derek on the back. He sees Cora roll her eyes at Derek before looking over at Lydia with a raised eyebrow.

Stiles stills when he spots a familiar figure out of the corner of his eye. He has to do a double take, rubbing his eyes for good measure, sure he must be hallucinating. He’s not. He couldn’t be that lucky. Stiles slowly creeps closer, thinking maybe it could just be a long lost relative. That is until the man speaks in an all too familiar tone of voice.

“Stiles? What the hell? Where are we?”

Stiles knows his eyes must be bugging out of his head at this point, his voice bordering on hysteria as he stares at the man in front of him, “ _Dad?!_ ”

John frowns as he looks around, “What’s going on son? What is this place? Have we been drugged and kidnapped?”

Stiles glances over to where the group is still standing in front of the castle steps, seemingly oblivious to Stiles’ situation. He grabs his Dad’s arm and drags him behind the statue in the middle of the courtyard. “We haven’t been kidnapped, no. We just got sent back.”

“Sent back?” John says slowly, eyeing their surroundings warily. “Sent back where? And why?”

“Well that’s a long story,” Stiles says, “but basically we’re in Camelot and supposed to help Merlin. I’d been hoping that your name being on the paper the witch gave us was wrong but apparently not because here you are. And now we really need to get your story straight before Arthur sees you.”

John just stares at him, mouth opening and closing a few times before he shuts it with an audible clack. His face is blank, eyes a little glassy as he stares ahead. Stiles is a little afraid that maybe he wasn’t joking that he’d need to be sent to Eichen if time travel was real.

“Dad?” Stiles says, waving a hand in front of John’s face, then snapping his fingers when he doesn’t immediately respond. “Hello? Dad? You in there?”

John shakes his head, eyes still a little unfocused as he moves his gaze to Stiles, “Time travel is real.”

“Yeah. And you’ve done it. I know you need to have your freak out. But can you please do it later so we can get our story straight?”

John nods, back straightening. “Sure son. What exactly is our story?”

“Well basically Jenna was the Queen of our Kingdom Beacon before stepping down after her husband died and letting Derek take over. Which yes, means Derek is her son here. Liam still is too. And Cora. They’re Prince Liam and Princess Cora. Theo is a knight. I’m Derek’s servant, while Lydia is Cora’s. And you, well now that you’re here you get to play your role.”

Stiles can’t help but let his lips twitch up into a smile. Despite the worry that his Dad is here he can’t help but look forward to seeing him act out his part. “Well your role is very important.”

“It is?”

“Oh yes,” Stiles nods, trying and failing to keep his face serious. “Your role is that of Jenna’s new husband. You two fell in love after the King died and she decided to remarry. That’s why she stepped down as Queen.”

John’s eyes widen comically large, “You mean I have to pretend to be married to Liam’s mother? God David will kill me.”

Stiles snorts, “You’re just pretending. Holding hands, maybe kissing her cheek for show. It’s not like you’re expected to take her to bed.”

John looks scandalized at the thought. “I would never.”

“I know Dad. Now come on. We should…”

“Stiles?” Derek asks, peering around the statue to look at Stiles. His eyes widen as he takes in John standing next to him, “John? What are you…?”

“Is everything alright here?” Arthur asks, moving to stand next to Derek.

Stiles does his best to put on a wide smile as he faces the king, “Yes Sire. I just happened to notice Lord John here wandering around the courtyard. He looked a little lost.”

“You know this man?”

“We do Your Majesty,” Jenna says, kind smile on her face as she walks up to John. “He’s my husband.”

“You husband?” Arthur asks, brow furrowing in confusion.

“Yes Sire. I remarried after the children’s father died. John was traveling with us on the road but we got separated in the attack. He sent us ahead while he tried to lure the men away. He’s the reason we made it out.”

Stiles has to admit, Jenna is certainly able to spin a believable tale. From the look on Arthur’s face he seems to buy it.

“We’re certainly grateful you made it here safely, Lord John,” Arthur says. “I was just telling the rest of your party about dinner. Tonight it will be a simple one so that you all can get some much needed rest. Tomorrow we will hold a feast in order to properly welcome all of you to Camelot.”

“That’s very kind of you Your Majesty,” John says, giving an almost believable smile. Stiles is sure it’s believable to Arthur and the others, but Stiles knows his Dad and can tell he’s still on edge about the whole situation. Stiles can’t really blame him.

Arthur nods his head in acknowledgement before turning to Merlin, “Merlin, can you and Guinevere show our guests to their chambers? And after that I want you two to help Stiles and Lydia get acquainted with the castle. Make sure they have what they need to best serve our guests.”

Merlin ducks his head, “Certainly Sire.”

“I look forward to seeing you all at dinner tonight,” Arthur says. “For now I need to go talk to my knights about doing more patrols in the forest.”

With that Arthur walks off, with Gwaine, Lancelot, and Leon trailing after him. Stiles wishes he had time to talk to Derek and the others alone but as soon as Arthur is gone Merlin is leading them into the castle. A woman who introduces herself as Guinevere joins them on the steps and immediately strikes up a conversation with Lydia and Cora.

Stiles is a little confused by the whole thing. He knows the legends. He knows how Arthur was supposed to marry Guinevere, but from what he can tell the two have shown almost no interest in each other. In fact, the person Arthur seemed to pay the most attention to was Merlin.

He’s definitely going to have to keep an eye on things around here, especially if Merlin insists on keeping him under such careful watch. Stiles has been more than aware of the young warlock’s eyes on him. He just has to figure out _why_.

Stiles follows Derek into his room, telling Merlin he needs to make sure he doesn’t need anything before leaving him. He shuts the door and walks to Derek, wrapping his arms around Derek’s waist and resting his head on his chest. Derek is quick to bring his arms up, one on his back and the other moving up to card his fingers through Stiles’ hair in a way that always calms him. Now isn’t any different.

“I hate that I have to leave you alone in this strange place,” Stiles mumbles.

Derek sighs, “I know you do. I’m not fond of it either, but we both know it’s necessary.”

Stiles nods, moving his head back to look at Derek, “I also hate that we’re going to have to pretend we’re not together, that I’m nothing more than your servant.”

“So do I,” Derek tells him, voice soft and he moves his hand to Stiles’ cheek. “Hopefully it won’t be for too long.”

Stiles doesn’t say anything, just leans up and captures Derek’s lips in a soft kiss. When he pulls back he rests his forehead against Derek’s, “I love you. Don’t forget.”

“Never,” Derek says, lips twitching into a smile. “Come find me tonight?”

Stiles nods, “I will. You know I can’t sleep without you anymore.”

“Neither can I.”

Stiles sighs, reluctantly moving away from Derek. “I need to go. I don’t want Merlin becoming even more suspicious of me.”

“I doubt he’s suspicious Stiles,” Derek says.

“He is though,” Stiles tells him. “I can tell. He keeps staring at me like he knows I’m hiding something.”

“Well you are,” Derek points out.

“We all are. And that’s the problem. Merlin knows we’re hiding something. We need him to trust us. He won’t trust us if he thinks we’re keeping secrets.”

Derek shrugs, “So tell him the truth.”

“You want me to tell him?” Stiles asks, speaking slowly. “Tell him that we time traveled? That’s a thing you want me to do?”

“It might be helpful if he knew the truth,” Derek says. “He might trust you more if you’re honest with him.”

“Might being the keyword,” Stiles mutters. “Or he could just think I’m insane. Or lying to him.”

“It’s a risk you might have to take,” Derek says.

“But right now?” Stiles asks, eyes drifting towards the door before moving back to Derek. “We just got here and you want me to blurt out first thing that we’re time travelers?”

“We’re not time travelers. We don’t do it for a living. This was an accident.”

Stiles rolls his eyes, “I’m sure that will make all the difference.”

Derek’s hand drifts up to Stiles’ shoulder, squeezing it softly, “It will be fine Stiles. You both have magic, surely you can bond over that.”

“Not when magic is banned in Camelot and he’s supposed to be keeping it a secret.”

Derek sighs, gently knocking his head against Stiles’ in a way that always makes him smile, “Just keep calm. If anyone can do this, you can. And I’ll be right here in the castle if you need me.”

Stiles closes his eyes, letting himself enjoy the feeling of being so close to Derek. Then he’s pulling away, placing a quick kiss to Derek’s lips, “I’ll see you later.”

Derek nods, “Be careful.”

Stiles shoots a grin over his shoulder as he goes, “Aren’t I always?”

“No,” Derek says, “and that’s what has me worried.”

Stiles laughs, making his way out the door and almost running right into Merlin. He jumps back with a startled yell, earning a raised eyebrow from Merlin. After staring at Stiles for a moment Merlin shakes his head, “Are you ready to go?”

Stiles nods, gesturing at Merlin to go ahead of him. “Lead the way.”

Stiles tries to pay attention as Merlin shows him around the castle but there are so many twists and turns that he knows he’s going to wind up getting lost. He just hopes he’s able to remember the way back to Derek’s chambers when this is all over.

Merlin must sense his uneasiness because he shoots him a small smile, “It’s a lot to get used to. It took me weeks before I was able to make my way around this place without getting lost.”

Stiles lets out a long breath, “Good to know.”

“And everyone is usually pretty helpful about showing the way if you need help,” Merlin tells him, making his way up yet another winding staircase. “If you wind up getting lost just ask.”

Stiles nods, following Merlin as he makes his way into a room. It’s nicer than some of the others he’s seen on their way by them. He realizes it must be Arthur’s.

“I might be showing you around but I still have chores to do,” Merlin says, picking up some of the discarded clothes with a shake of his head. “Arthur won’t be happy if I neglect my duties.”

Stiles watches Merlin for a moment before sighing, “Do you need any help?”

Merlin gives him a considering look before shaking his head, “No. I can handle it. Just wait by the door. This shouldn’t take long.”

It takes longer than Stiles would have liked. It would be boring watching Merlin work if he wasn’t constantly aware of the way Merlin’s gaze would flick in his direction. Stiles had hoped it would stop once they actually talked a bit but it hasn’t. Merlin obviously still has a problem with him and Stiles is tired of having to sit back and take it.

“You don’t like me much, do you?” Stiles asks

“I don’t trust you,” Merlin says. “There’s something not right about you and your friends. And I will figure out what it is.”

Stiles sighs, leaning against the door as he watches Merlin. “I could tell you but chances are you won’t believe me.”

“I’ve seen some strange things in my life,” Merlin tells him. “Whatever you’re hiding can’t be that bad.”

“You say that now,” Stiles mutters. “You don’t trust me. I get it. I know that the best way to gain your trust is to tell you the truth, but it’s big.”

Merlin crosses his arms, staring across the room at Stiles, “I assure you I can handle whatever it is you have to tell me.”

“Maybe not standing up,” Stiles says, gesturing to the seat Merlin is standing next to. He moves to take the one across from him. It’ll make it easier to gauge his reaction to the news. “My companions and I aren’t from here, and I don't mean Camelot. We traveled a long way.”

“How long?”

“A _long_ way. I’m not just talking distance. I mean _time_.”

“Time?” Merlin asks, disbelief clear in his voice.

Stiles nods, “Yeah time. We’re from the future.”

Merlin still looks skeptical, “If you’re from the future why are you here?”

“Don’t know,” Stiles shrugs. “We just know you needed help.”

“How did you know that?”

“That’s what we were told. That you needed help with some creature and we were to assist you. I figured you would know.”

“Well I don’t,” Merlin says, “unless…”

“Unless what?”

“Unless it was the dragon.”

“The dragon?” Stiles asks. “Are you… wait. Dragons are real?”

“Two dragons,” Merlin tells him. “Uther had all the others killed. But Kilgharrah is still around, and Aithusa. Maybe Kilgharrah knows something. We should ask him. Not that he’s particularly helpful.”

“Ask him? He can talk?”

“Of course he can talk. Why wouldn’t he be able to talk?”

Stiles wants to say that it’s because he’s a dragon and dragons shouldn’t be able to talk. But time travel also shouldn’t exist yet here he is, in Camelot and talking to Merlin of all people. He’s dealt with his fair share of weird. He should be able to handle a talking dragon.

“Okay fine. So there’s a talking dragon,” Stiles says, trying to keep his tone light. “How do we talk to him?”

“I call him,” Merlin says.

“You _call_ him?” Stiles asks, tone incredulous. He knows Merlin isn’t talking about calling the dragon on the phone. He’s in Camelot for Pete’s sake. Electricity doesn’t exist yet, much less a telephone. His mind still blanks onto how Merlin could possibly call a dragon.

“I’m a dragon lord,” Merlin tells him. “I call for him and he comes.”

“Right,” Stiles sighs. “So let’s go call this dragon.”

“We can’t do it now. We’ll have to do it tonight when it’s dark. I’ll come find you.”

“Okay but…” Stiles hesitates, wondering if he should tell Merlin where he’ll be or just stay in the room he’s supposed to. He decides that he might as well tell him, if he’s being honest about everything else there’s no point in trying to hide this. “I’ll be in Derek’s chambers. You can find me there.”

Merlin studies his face for a moment before his expression softens slightly, “Alright. It might be late so be ready.”

Stiles agrees and then watches as Merlin stands and gets back to work. He’s not sure if he should be worried about just how easy it was to get Merlin to accept what he had to say. All he knows is that he’s grateful to no longer be under the warlock’s scrutiny. Merlin might not trust him completely yet but they’re at least getting somewhere.

It’s a few hours later when they’re heading down to lunch that they run into Liam and Theo wandering the halls. Liam grins when he sees Stiles while Theo holds back a bit. They might be on good terms now but Stiles can tell Theo is still unsure of how to approach him.

“Oh good. We found you!” Liam says.

“You were looking for me?” Stiles asks, looking from Liam to Theo.

“Well maybe no _you_ exactly,” Liam amends, “but someone. We got a little lost.”

“Actually,” Theo says, looking at Merlin before letting his eyes drift back towards Stiles. “It’s a good thing we did find you. Lord John is feeling a little… restless.”

Stiles sighs. Of course he is. He’s probably barely keeping his cool about the whole time travel thing. Stiles knows he needs to talk to him, it’s just getting to him that’s the problem.

“Are you close with Lord John?” Merlin asks, giving Stiles a considering look.

Stiles looks up and down the hallway to make sure they’re alone before facing Merlin. “He’s my father and he’s not exactly alright with this whole situation we’ve found ourselves in.”

Merlin nods, face losing a little bit of the tension, “Of course. You should go to him then. I should be okay until dinner.”

Stiles nods his thanks and is about take off when he realizes he has no idea where he needs to go. “Umm…”

Merlin chuckles, “I’ll show you the way.”

“Umm Stiles,” Liam whispers, falling into step beside him. “How much does Merlin know?”

Stile glances up to where Merlin and Theo are talking, apparently having a good conversation if the way Merlin’s shoulders are shaking with laughter is anything to go by. Leave it to Theo to be able to charm Merlin. “I’ve told him enough. That we’ve time traveled and that we’re here to help him.”

Liam looks at him with wide eyed shock, “And he’s okay with that?”

Stiles shrugs, “I’m not sure. But we’re going to talk to the dragon tonight to see if he knows anything.”

Liam stops in his tracks, his voice high when he speaks, “ _What?_ ”

“Surprise there’s a dragon?”

Liam flails for a bit as he tries to find his words. He still hasn’t found them by the time Merlin and Theo make their way back to them, clearly noticing they were no longer following. Theo tilts his head as he watches Liam, “Did you break him?”

“All I did was tell him about the dragon then this,” Stiles gestures at where Liam is now just standing there with his mouth hanging open, “happened.”

Theo rolls his eyes, stepping towards Liam. He tries the same methods Stiles did earlier when his Dad had basically gone into shock. When neither of them work he smacks Liam upside the head, earning a surprised yell from the beta. Liam glares up at Theo, hand resting on the back of his head. “What the hell was that for?”

Theo shrugs, a smug smirk playing across his lips, “You weren’t responding to anything else.”

“Yeah well forgive me for being in shock at being told there’s a…” he looks around the corridor nervously, lowering his voice as he speaks the last word. “ _Dragon_.”

Theo snorts, “Liam, we’re in Camelot. Of course there would be a dragon.”

“But it can talk,” Liam says, voice rising again as he turns his gaze to Merlin. “Right? That’s what Stiles said.”

“He can,” Merlin says, speaking slowly as if he’s afraid talking any faster will startle Liam. Stiles can’t really blame him.

“Can I come? When you meet him? It would be so cool to meet a dragon.”

Merlin looks to Stiles and Theo who both shrug, “Just you. I don’t want to make him uncomfortable with a bunch of strangers. Although, knowing Kilgharrah he’ll be expecting you.”

“His name is Kilgharrah?” Liam asks, voice filled with awe. “That’s so cool. Theo we need to go find Mom. She’ll love this.”

“I’m sure she’s with Dad or nearby,” Stiles tells them. “So let’s move it along.”

The walk to the chambers John is staying in isn’t long. Stiles is just grateful the room is a few doors down from Derek’s so he won’t have to go wandering around looking for him. His Dad is pacing around the room when Stiles enters, while Jenna watches with an amused smile on her face.

She turns her head when they walk into the room, her smile widening when she spots Liam and Theo, “Ah there are my boys. I was wondering where you ran off to.”

“We were taking a look around and then we got lost,” Liam admits, giving his Mom a sheepish smile.

Jenna fondly rolls her eyes, “Of course you did. But at least you found Stiles.”

Liam beams over at her, “We did.”

Stiles watches as his Dad continues to pace around the room, muttering to himself under his breath. He still hasn’t even acknowledged Stiles’ presence in the room. Stiles turns to Jenna with a raised eyebrow, “How long has he been like this?”

Jenna sighs, “Ever since Arthur came to check in on us.”

Realization dawns on Stiles as he realizes they most likely had to pretend to be a couple. Stiles can’t help the laugh that starts building in his chest. It only gets worse when he starts picturing how the whole thing played out. He has to lean against one of the pillars in the middle of the room to stay standing as he gasps for breath. Once he’s calmed down enough he wipes his eyes, chuckles still escaping every now and then. “Oh man. I’m sorry I had to miss that.”

“I don’t see how it’s funny,” John says, voice clipped as he finally stops pacing and turns to face his son. “I’m traumatized.”

Jenna rolls her eyes, “It really wasn't that bad. He’s just being dramatic.”

“You’re _married_ ,” John says, sounding scandalized.

“So I take it wherever you all came from you two aren’t really married?” Merlin asks, looking between John and Jenna.

John’s eyes widen as he looks at Merlin, as if he’s just now realizing he’s in the room. “Oh shit.”

“It’s fine Dad,” Stiles tells him, trying to stop the man from going into another fit of hysteria. “Merlin knows.”

John sighs, leaning back against the wall as he runs a hand down his face. “Well that’s good at least. One less lie we have to tell.”

“It’s not really lying,” Stiles says, “it’s more like omitting bits of the truth.”

John levels him with a long look that tells him he thinks it’s basically the same thing. “That’s not any better son.”

“I tried,” Stiles shrugs. “You done with your freak out now?”

“For the time being,” John says. “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to this though.”

“I think it’s great,” Jenna says. “I’ve always wanted to visit Camelot and now here were are.”

Liam grins over at his Mom, “I know right? It’s so cool.”

“You really could be related to Derek. He’s been nerding out all day. ” Stiles tells them. “Speaking of my nerdy boyfriend, where is he?”

“He was in his room last I checked,” Jenna tells him. “He’d gone out to explore for a bit but I’m pretty sure he’s back.”

“Boyfriend?” Merlin asks, brow furrowing as he looks at Stiles. “What’s a boyfriend?”

Stiles stares at him for a moment, trying to think of the best way to describe what he has with Derek. It had been hard enough in modern times. He doesn’t know how he can find the words for it here that Merlin could understand. Especially since he knows the subject of two men dating probably isn’t opening discussed or accepted. “Well it’s… um… he’s my…”

“They’re in love,” Jenna says, as if it’s just that simple. To her it probably is.

Merlin tilts his head, looking at Stiles consideringly. “Is that something that’s common where you’re from?”

“It is now,” Stiles tells him. “There are still people that don’t approve but we’ve come a long way and people are more accepting.”

“As they should be,” Jenna says. “I don’t see how it’s anyone’s business as long as two people are in love and treat each other right. You two love each other and make each other happy. There’s no reason you shouldn’t be together.”

While her words are directed at Stiles he can tell who they’re really meant for. Her eyes are focused on where Liam and Theo are standing, close enough that their shoulders are touching. Liam remains oblivious because his eyes are focused on Theo but Stiles can tell Theo notices. His eyes widen as he looks from Jenna down to Liam. When their eyes meet Liam blushes, ducks his head and looks away.

“Oh honestly,” Jenna mutters, shaking her head with a sigh.

“I wish it were that way here,” Merlin says, voice quiet and wistful.

And Stiles knows he does. He can tell already just by the looks Arthur and Merlin share. It makes him sad that two people could love each other so much yet not have the option of being together. “It won’t be that way forever,” Stiles tells him. “And you know that no matter that the rest of the world thinks there are ways of being together.”

“In secret,” Merlin sighs, shoulders slumping. “I’m tired of all the secrets.”

“Oh honey,” Jenna says, walking up to Merlin and putting a hand on his shoulder. “Sometimes the best thing you can do is be honest. People will surprise you.”

“He always does,” Merlin mutters. Then as if a switch has been flipped a wide smile is appearing on his face again. Stiles can tell it’s fake, it’s far too bright and doesn’t quite meet his eyes. “I’ll leave you all too it then, and see you at dinner.”

He’s walking out of the room before anyone else has a chance to say anything. Stiles watches him go with a heavy heart. Stiles had known Merlin was guarded for a reason, but now it’s all starting to make more sense. He’s wary because he has to be. He’s so used to keeping secrets and worrying about people discovering who he really is that he has no choice but to keep his walls up.

Stiles knows better than anyone what it’s like to plaster on fake smiles and a happy outgoing personality when inside he’s really screaming and wishing someone would notice he’s not okay. It took him a long time to admit to someone just how not okay he really is. That person had been Derek. He knows he’s lucky to have him. Stiles just wishes Merlin had someone like that, or that he’d at least trust someone enough to open up.

After making sure his Dad is fine Stiles makes his way down to Derek’s chambers. He smiles when Derek calls out for him to come in. He’s not surprised to see Derek sitting in one of the big chairs with a book in his hands. Derek looks up when he enters, grin spreading across his face, “Stiles.”

Stiles smiles and makes his way over to Derek. He crawls into his lap and buries his face in Derek’s neck, letting out a long breath when Derek puts the book down and brings his arms up to wrap around his waist.

“Everyone alright?” Derek asks, running a hand down his back.

“Yeah,” Stiles mumbles. “I’m just really glad that I have you, you know?”

“I know,” Derek says, voice soft. “I’m glad I have you too. But what brought this on?”

“I was just talking to Merlin and it just hit me how different things are here. He’s having to keep so many secrets, from Arthur and everyone else. Not just his magic but his feelings too.”

“His feelings for Arthur,” Derek says, not sounding the least bit surprised. “I know. I’m pretty sure Arthur is in the same boat.”

“It’s just not fair,” Stiles says, pulling back to look at him. “It’s not fair that two people can be so in love but afraid to admit it because they think society won’t accept them. I know we still have a long way to go in the future but at least it’s not like this.”

“It won’t always be like this,” Derek reminds him. “Sometimes people just need to be shown the way.”

“Yeah,” Stiles sighs. “Can we just stay like this for a bit? Until we have to go down for dinner?”

“Of course,” Derek says, placing a kiss to Stiles forehead.

Stiles sighs happily, moving his head to Derek’s chest. He knows he should probably be out with Merlin trying to figure out what they’re facing but he needs this right now. Plus, he doubts they’ll know much before they at least talk to the dragon. Staying here should be fine. He keeps telling himself that as he slowly falls asleep in Derek's arms.

 

* * *

 

He doesn’t know how long he sleeps before Derek is gently shaking him awake. He blinks up at Derek to find the alpha smiling down at him, “Hey.”

“Hey,” Derek says, carding a hand through his hair. “Merlin just came by to say it’s almost time to head down for dinner.”

Stiles nods, bringing a hand up as he yawns. “Yeah okay. We should go then.”

“We should. But first…”

Before Stiles can say anything Derek uses his grip on Stiles’ hair to pull him down for a kiss. It’s hard and rough and leaves Stiles panting by the end of it. “God I love you.”

Derek smiles, brushing his thumb down Stiles’ cheek, “I love you too.”

Stiles grins, leaning back in for another kiss, this one much softer. It doesn’t last long, a knock at the door causing them to pull away.

“Who is it?” Derek calls, never taking his eyes off Stiles.

“It’s John. Is Stiles is there with you?”

“Yeah I am,” Stiles calls back, placing a final kiss to Derek’s lips before jumping off Derek’s lap and making his way towards the door. He opens it to find his Dad, Jenna, Cora, Lydia, and Guinevere out there waiting for them. “Where are Liam and Theo?”

“Merlin took them down to dinner,” Cora tells him. “Please tell me Derek is ready to go. If he’s not you two can find your own way down because I’m not waiting.”

“I’m ready,” Derek says, walking up behind Stiles. “Let’s go.”

“If you’ll follow me,” Guinevere says, smiling over at them.

“Thank you Guinevere.”

“Oh please, call me Gwen. Everyone else does,” Gwen says. “Well not everyone. But most people do. Not that _you’re_ most people. I just mean… I’ll be shutting up now.”

“It’s quite alright Gwen,” Derek says, smiling over at her. “No one can out ramble Stiles.”

“Hey!” Stiles says, glaring over at his boyfriend.

Derek winks at him causing him to roll his eyes. Stiles slows down, letting Derek and Gwen lead the way so that he can talk with Lydia and Cora. “How are you two doing?”

“It’s been interesting,” Lydia says. “I never imagined myself working as a servant in the court of Camelot, but Gwen has been lovely. Apparently she’s planning her wedding to Lancelot and was asking our opinions on fabric and a bunch of other things you wouldn’t understand or even care about.”

“You’re right on that,” Stiles says, grinning at her. “But you’ve been doing alright?”

“Yes Stiles we’ve been fine,” Cora tells him. “Not everyone is upset to be here.”

“I never said I was upset,” Stiles says. “I just know we’re here for a reason and I don’t think it’s a good one.”

“That doesn’t mean we can’t try and enjoy ourselves,” Lydia tells him.

“Enjoy yourselves all you want. But just know if I find out anything I might need your help.”

Lydia nods, “When the time comes, we’ll be ready.”

They fall silent after that, making their way into the dining hall where Arthur is waiting for them with Theo, Liam, Gwaine, Lancelot, and a few of the other knights. Stiles watches as Derek, Cora, John, and Jenna all take seats at the table and moves to stand behind Derek with a pitcher of wine as he notices the other servants doing.

 It’s not until the food is brought in that he realizes just how hungry he is. He’s been so busy today that the thought of food slipped his mind. Now he’s just hoping this dinner doesn't take too long so he can sneak off to the kitchens and find something to eat. Though he knows it’ll be far less appealing than the food currently laid out in front of him.

Stiles moves forward and starts filling Derek’s glass, cursing himself when his stomach rumbles. He startles when he feels Derek’s hand on his arm, gripping it tight enough to prevent him from moving far. When Derek speaks his voice is soft, “Have you eaten Stiles?”

Stiles’ eyes dart from Derek over to where Arthur is watching them, face curious. Stiles shakes his head, attempting to move but Derek’s grip only tightens, “I haven’t but it’s fine.”

“It’s not fine if you haven’t eaten since last night,” Derek tells him. “You’re swaying on your feet and look as if you’re about to fall over.”

“It doesn’t help that you’re cutting off all circulation to my arm,” Stiles grits out. Adding on a quick, “Sire” when he remembers where they are.

“You know he’s just worried about you son,” John says from his spot next to Derek.

Stiles sighs, eyes softening as he looks at Derek. He lets his fingers brush over Derek’s back, trying to calm him. He understands that Derek is worried and he appreciates it, but he also needs to play his part.

“He is looking a bit pale,” Arthur says from his place at the head of the table. “Perhaps you should sit down, Stiles.”

Arthur gestures to the seat between him and Derek with a kind smile. Stiles hesitates for a moment before letting himself fall into the seat. It takes everything in him not to lean into Derek. Instead he turns his attention towards Arthur, giving him a small smile, “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Arthur returns the smile before waving Merlin over, “Get Stiles a plate. And grab one for yourself. If he hasn’t eaten then I doubt you have either. That goes for you as well Lydia and Guinevere.”

Merlin nods, heading across the room and grabbing four of the extra plates. He sets one down in front of Stiles, passing two of the others to Lydia and Gwen and then just stands there with his plate. He lets out a yelp when Arthur grabs him by the back of his tunic and yanks him over to the seat on his other side.

When neither one move to grab any of the food Arthur rolls his eyes, gesturing towards the still heaping plates of food in the middle of the table, “Well go on then. Eat up. It’s not as if we’re going to eat it all.”

Stiles only hesitates another second before moving forward and putting various foods on his plate. He looks across the table to see Lydia and Gwen doing the same with a little more dignity. Stiles slows down a bit. When he’s done he glances over to see Derek watching him with an amused smile.

A glance at Arthur shows that he’s too busy piling food onto Merlin’s plate for him. He can’t help but smile at that. When he looks across the table he sees Gwaine knocking shoulders with one of the other knights and laughing as they watch Arthur and Merlin. When Gwaine catches Stiles looking at him he winks. Stiles just shakes his head with a smile and turns his attention to his food.

Stiles lets himself relax a bit as he eats. He knows they have things to worry about but it can wait. He’s eating dinner with King Arthur and his friends and family are safe and happy. It’s all a little surreal.

* * *

 

Stiles doesn’t know how it happens but one minute he’s eating dinner and the next Merlin is appearing at the door to Derek’s room with Liam at his side telling him it’s time to go. Stiles spares a glance at Derek who’s sleeping peacefully in the bed before slipping quietly from the room, closing the door behind him. They weave their way through the castle, ducking into and out of little passageways Stiles never would have thought to look for. Something tells him Merlin is far too used to doing this sort of thing.

They make their way outside and sneak past the guards and head towards the forest. Stiles and Liam run after Merlin as he rushes through the trees, voice deep as he calls for the dragon. “O drakon, e male so ftengometta tesd'hup'anankes!”

Stiles has no idea what he’s saying. He figures Lydia would if she were here. Not that it matters, whatever Merlin says seems to work. He doesn’t need to be a werewolf to hear the sound of wings approaching them in the distance. A moment later a large dragon comes into view, landing right in front of where they’re standing in a clearing.

If Stiles had any doubts before about dragons existing they’re gone now. It’s hard to deny it with a real life dragon in front of him. He has a moment to think about how Derek would love this before he shakes the thought. He needs to focus. It’s a little hard when he’s feeling like he might faint at the sight of the gigantic beast. Liam isn’t looking much better, his face pale and eyes wide as he stares at the dragon.

The dragon’s eyes flick from Liam to Stiles before coming to rest on Merlin, “Good evening young warlock. I’m assuming there’s a reason why you’ve called me here?”

Merlin nods, back straight as he addresses the dragon, “There is. There’s something out there in the woods and it’s killing. For now, it’s animals but it came close to hurting a human the other night. I was hoping you might know what it is.”

“And why your companions have appeared here too, I’m assuming.” Kilgharrah says, amusement clear in his voice. “I don’t know much except that your friends being here serves a greater purpose than finding this creature.”

Merlin looks as if he’s debating what to ask, obviously knowing he’s only going to get so much information out of the dragon, “What do we do?”

“There is creature roaming these woods that your companions know Merlin,” Kilgharrah says. “One that has spawned the darkness that will try and snuff out Arthur’s light.”

“How do we stop it?” Merlin asks.

“Make the beast remember who he his.”

Merlin’s brow furrows in confusion, “Make the beast remember who he is? What does that mean? That he’s not really a beast?”

“He is more than a beast,” Kilgharrah tells him, “because he is also a man. Something I think your new friends here would understand.”

Merlin turns his head to look at where Stiles and Liam are standing. Stiles tries to remain impassive while Liam shifts nervously beside him. “So they’re more than time travelers then?”

“Oh yes,” Kilgharrah says, “so much more.”

“We can worry about that later,” Merlin sighs. “So you’re saying if we want to stop the beast from hurting people we have to get him to change back to a man? But how? How can we make him remember who he is?”

“You already have what you need in the young Hale’s. Take them with you to find the beast and he will remember who he is.”

“He knows Derek and Cora?” Stiles asks, feeling unease swirling in his gut. “How?”

“I think you know that answer already, don’t you?” Kilgharrah asks.

Stiles sighs. He hates that the dragon is right. He does have a good idea who the beast could be. He’s just not going to say it. Only because he doesn’t want to be right. If he’s right that would just make things that much more complicated.

“I’m not sure,” Stiles says instead. It’s not a complete lie at least.

The dragon stares at him for a long moment before speaking, “You are special in a way you will soon begin to understand.”

Stiles frowns, “What does that mean?”

“It’s not time for you to know yet young Stilinski, but you will. And you,” Kilgharrah turns his gaze from Stiles to Liam. “Romance will come into your life in a very unusual sort of way, it’s best not to fight it.”

Liam tilts his head in confusion, “What are you, some sort of scaly fortune cookie?”

The dragon chuckles turning his gaze back to where Merlin is watching them.

“What is a fortune cookie?” Merlin asks.

“Nothing for you to worry about Merlin,” Kilgharrah says, wings fluttering restlessly at his side. “You have what you need, use it.”

Stiles has a feeling he’s preparing to leave. Sure enough, his wings start flapping as he starts lifting into the air. Merlin looks like he wants to stop him but he doesn’t. He just lets him fly away into the night. They all know they weren’t going to get much more out of him. Not that they got much to begin with. Stiles felt like he was talking to a weird variation of a fortune cookie and Deaton.

“Well that was helpful,” Stiles mutters, watching as the dragon rises up higher and higher into the sky.

“It’s more than we had before,” Merlin says, though Stiles can tell he’s less than pleased as he makes his way back towards the tree line. “We should head back.”

Stiles nods, about to follow after Merlin when he notices Liam just standing there looking a little dazed. “You okay Liam?”

“How did he know?” Liam asks, voice barely above a whisper.

Stiles doesn’t have to ask to know what he’s referring to. It’s been obvious to everyone that there’s something growing between Liam and Theo. Probably the only two people that haven’t noticed are the two idiots themselves. He’s not surprised the dragon knows _something._ Stiles still isn’t sure if he buys the whole thing. But if it helps get Liam on the right path…

“It’s obviously just destined to be,” Stiles says as he puts an arm around Liam’s shoulder and steers him towards the trees. “Some medieval dragon knows about your love, which means it’s destined to happen.”

Liam gapes at him, “What? No. That’s not…”

“You heard the dragon, it’s best not to fight it.”

Stiles’ grin widens when Merlin speaks up from in front of them, “He’s right. The best thing you can do is listen to the dragon.”

Despite the fear that’s nagging in the back of his mind about the unknown beast they’re going to face and the fact that it’s somehow connected to Derek and Cora, Stiles can’t help but feel a little light. They know more now than they did before, and for now that’s going to have to be enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Kudos/Commnts make my day <3 I see and appreciate all of them even if I I'm not able to respond to them as fast as I'd like to. Sorry the chapter took so long but things have been a little crazy lately. I'm not sure they're going to slow down any but the next chapter is in the works.  
> [My tumblr](http://tabbytabbytabby.tumblr.com/)


	3. Chapter 3

Derek wakes slowly, his eyes blinking open to find the room filled with an unnatural amount of sunlight. It’s not until his eyes adjust and he takes in his surroundings that he realizes it is natural. In fact, it’s probably more natural than any early morning sun he’s ever seen. Even when he went off the grid and lived in the woods for a few months after leaving Beacon Hills he’d still never experienced anything quite like this. He can’t resist throwing the covers off and padding over to the window.

He opens the window and leans out, his arms resting on the still cool concrete as he lets the morning breeze wash over him. Looking out he feels his breath catch. He can see the forest in the distance, a sea of greens and browns and greys. Directly below him the streets of Camelot are alive and bustling with people. They’re carrying baskets of food and clothing and other things as they shout greetings to each other. Derek smiles when he notices two of them are Stiles and Merlin weaving their way through the courtyard and up towards the castle steps.

Stiles must have snuck out early this morning to keep up appearances. He hates that it has to be like that but if they want their story to be believed it’s just something they’ll have to do, for now at least. He eventually hopes they can fill Arthur in on the truth, but unfortunately that might mean a much bigger truth might need to be told. That truth isn’t for them to tell.

Derek snorts when Stiles’ boot catches on one of the steps as he’s running up. As if he can sense Derek’s gaze, Stiles looks up, eyes finding Derek almost immediately. Derek can’t stop the wide grin from spreading across his face when Stiles grins and waves at him. Derek nods his head in acknowledgment, to him and to Merlin when the latter notices Stiles’ attention is focused elsewhere.

Merlin nods back before grabbing Stiles by the jacket and pulling him along, muttering something to him. Derek barely catches it over all the other noise of the street but what he hears makes him sigh. “I know you two have some special bond but you really need to be careful, not everyone will be as understanding as I am.”

 _Special bond_. That’s one word for it. Derek moves over to the wardrobe, slipping his shirt over his head as he goes. He’s at least nice enough to throw it in the hamper. He smiles when he hears hurried footsteps and then the door is flying open as Stiles runs in. He stops in the doorway, eyes trained on Derek, and almost gets knocked over when Merlin immediately tries to follow Stiles inside.

“What are you…?” Merlin looks from Stiles to a Derek and shakes his head, lips twitching up into a smile. “I’ll leave you to it then.” He turns to go, only to stop and address Derek, “My lord, King Arthur wishes to speak with you. I doubt he’s made it out of bed yet but I thought you should know.”

Derek ducks his head in acknowledgment, giving Merlin a kind smile. “Thank you Merlin. I’ll find him later when he’s more awake.”

Merlin grins, “Probably for the best. He’s not in the best mood in the morning.”

As if on cue they hear Arthur bellowing from a few rooms over, “ _Merlin!_ ”

Merlin bows to Derek, smiles at Stiles, and then takes off, hurrying down the hall to where Arthur is waiting.

“Those two certainly have an interesting relationship,” Derek comments.

Stiles sighs, closing the door and moving further into the room. Derek watches as he moves to one of the pillars in the room and leans against it, arms crossed across his chest.

“What is it?” Derek asks, walking until he’s standing in front of Stiles.

Stiles leans his head back, looking up at the ceiling. “It’s just… I know things aren’t perfect but I’m glad we live when we do. I couldn’t imagine loving you and not being able to be with you simply because it’s not accepted by society.”

Derek frowns. He knows what Stiles means though. It was bad enough having to hide his feelings for so long because neither of them were ready. To live in a time period where they actually weren’t allowed to be together would be torture. Derek still has to hope that Camelot won’t always be like this. Arthur is king, his people love him. Surely they’d just want him to be happy, regardless of who he loves.

“It would kill me,” Derek admits, cupping Stiles’ cheek. “To see you and love you and know you loved me in return but not be able to be with you. It was hard enough before we were together. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like here.”

“Do you think they’ll ever find a way to be together?” Stiles asks.

“I hope so,” Derek says. “Two people that love each other as much as those two seem to shouldn’t be kept apart.”

“Maybe we can help them?”

“And how do you suggest we do that?”

Stiles shrugs, “Merlin already knows we're together. We just have to show him that it’s okay, not just here but anywhere.”

“It might not be that simple,” Derek points out.

“No,” Stiles says, “but we have to try. Or well… _I do_. I want you to work on Arthur.”

Derek raises an eyebrow, “You want me to convince the King of Camelot that it’s okay to be gay?”

Stiles laughs, “Maybe not in those exact words but essentially, yes. He likes you. He might listen to you.”

“I’ll try,” Derek says, leaning in to kiss Stiles. “Right now I need to do doing something about this.”

He reaches up, running a hand through his beard.

“Are you sure you need to shave?” Stiles asks, running his fingers through Derek’s beard. “You look so hot with the beard. Especially with these little specks of grey.”

“It’s not grey,” Derek mutters. “I’m not old.”

Stiles chuckles, fingers tugging softly at the hair on Derek’s chin, “Oh it is. And like I said it. It’s totally hot. It’s a shame we have to get rid of it.”

“Stiles,” Derek sighs, instinctively leaning into the touch. “I need to look more kingly.”

“Plenty of kings have beards,” Stiles mumbles, teeth scraping across Derek’s jaw.

Derek gasps, moving his hands to grip Stiles’ hips. He feels Stiles smirk as he continues his way down, drawing a moan from Derek when he sucks on a particularly sensitive spot below Derek’s jaw. They both know what he’s trying to do but all Derek can do is move forward, pinning Stiles to the pillar with his hips.

“We don’t have time for this,” Derek says, words turning into another moan when Stiles rocks his hips up against his. “I have to meet Arthur.”

“Hmm,” Stiles says, kissing his way down Derek’s neck. “It would be rude to keep the king waiting.”

He looks up at Derek through his lashes and Derek feels whatever is left of his resolve start to crumble. He pulls Stiles in for a heated kiss, both of them moaning and moving against each other.

“The door,” Derek pulls back reluctantly, eyes glancing over at the unlocked door. “It’s… anyone could walk in.”

Stiles smirks, moving a hand down to grab Derek’s ass and pull him closer, “Wouldn’t that be scandalous?”

Derek groans, rolling his hips up against Stiles’. It’s so much but not quite enough. Feeling Stiles’ erection brushing against his with each thrust but having the fabric of their trousers between them is driving him crazy. He needs more.

“I need to feel you,” Derek murmurs, nipping gently at the exposed portion of Stiles’ jaw the same way Stiles had before.

“But anyone could walk in, remember?” Stiles says, eyes dark and dangerous.

“I don’t care. Fuck. I don’t. I just need to feel your skin Stiles.”

“Like this?” Stiles asks, his nails raking down Derek’s back causing Derek to moan. “Or like this?” He moves a hand down to the ties of Derek’s pants, quickly unknotting them and letting them fall away. He moves his hand to Derek’s now free cock and slowly strokes it, eyes never leaving Derek’s. “Is this what you want, Der?”

“Fuck,” Derek gasps, his head moving to rest against Stiles’.

Stiles’ hand stills, while the other moves up to cup Derek’s jaw and pull him back. “You didn’t answer me. Is this,” he gives another slow pull to Derek’s cock, “what you want?”

Derek shakes his head. He loves having Stiles’ hands on him. It never fails to drive him crazy. Especially having those long, agile fingers wrapped around his cock. But he needs to feel Stiles. He knows they don’t have time for much, but he needs to have his hands on Stiles’ skin before he comes.

He blinks, moving a hand from Stiles’ hip to the ties of his trousers, glancing up at Stiles as he goes. “I said I needed to feel your skin Stiles.”

Stiles smirks, “Well you technically were. My hand has skin...Oh _fuck_.”

It’s Derek’s turn to smirk as he wraps a hand around Stiles’ cock and gives a firm stroke. He grimaces when Stiles’ head falls back against the stone pillar with a dull thud.

“Careful,” he murmurs, placing a kiss to Stiles’ cheek. “If you’re going to pass out it’s going to be because you come so hard you black out, not because you knocked yourself out.”

“Just shut up and stroke my dick,” Stiles groans.

Derek chuckles, moving in to tug at Stiles’ neckerchief with his teeth. He needs it off. He needs to get his mouth on Stiles’ neck. Needs to smell him and taste him.

Derek tugs until he gets the knot free, watching as the offending fabric falls to the ground. He lets out a pleased rumble and then moves in, sucking and biting at the milky skin of Stiles throat all the while stroking his cock in a rapid motion.

“So hot,” Stiles mutters, and then his hand starts working over Derek’s cock again, pulling a groan from him when Stiles thumbs over the head.

Derek knows it won’t take much more now, it never does when Stiles works his hand so perfectly over his cock. He wants it to last, wants to take his time and enjoy the delicious gasps and moans Stiles is giving but he knows it won’t.

Something about knowing what they’re doing and where they’re doing it, knowing that someone could walk in any moment and see them fills him with a nervous excitement. He’s almost dizzy with need.

“You like this?” Stiles asks, taking Derek’s earlobe into his teeth and pulling. “You like knowing anyone could walk in and see you like this? Don’t you, Der?”

“Yes,” Derek gasps, not even surprised that Stiles knows him well enough to have guessed where his thoughts were going. He continues stroking Stiles’ cock while he works his hips up, attempting to fuck up into Stiles’ first. “Fuck, Stiles. I’m close.”

Stiles chuckles, his breath ghosting across the skin of his neck and making Derek shiver. “Then come.”

Derek curses, eyes rolling back as his hips stutter and he comes. His grip tightens on Stiles' cock, earning a drawn out moan from Stiles. He hears Stiles let out a string of curses and his name as he continues to fuck his cock into Derek’s fist before there’s a wetness on his hand signaling Stiles’ release.

He blinks when he feels the warmth of Stiles’ body suddenly leave him and looks down to see Stiles sprawled out on the floor, gasping for air. He looks blearily up at Derek, a blinding grin taking over his face. “That was awesome.”

They both turn towards the door when they hear a throat clearing on the other side, followed by an amused voice. "Your Highness, King Arthur is waiting in his chambers for you once you've composed yourself."

Stiles and Derek share a look as the sounds of Gwaine's footfalls retreat down the hall, along with his amused laughter.

“Shit,” Stiles says, looking up at Derek with wide eyes. “How much do you think he heard?”

“Enough,” Derek says, his face grim.

“He didn’t sound upset,” Stiles tells him. “If anything he sounded amused. So I don’t think we have anything to worry about.”

“I hope so,” Derek says, not quite looking convinced.

“It’s Gwaine,” Stiles reminds him. “He seems to flirt with anyone. He’s kind of an equal opportunity kind of guy.”

“I guess so,” Derek sighs. “We should get cleaned up so I can go meet Arthur.”

Stiles nods, looking up at him from his place on the floor. “Yeah you do that. I’ll just… be here.”

Derek rolls his eyes, kicking off his trousers and moving towards the wardrobe. He smirks when he hears Stiles mumbling behind him. “That ass. This is unfair.”

“You should get up too Stiles,” Derek warns. “We can’t have them accusing you of lazing about.”

Stiles groans but slowly gets to his feet. He walks to the water basin and starts cleaning himself up before pulling his trousers back on. Derek smirks when Stiles picks up the neckerchief, “You’re definitely going to need that.”

Stiles pretends to rolls his eyes but Derek knows he loves the thought of being marked by Derek. Back home he might not have bothered covering up, but here they have to be more careful. Still, Derek will know what’s hiding beneath the fabric and that sends a thrill though him.

Once they’re dressed the pair exit the room together and head down the hall towards Arthur’s chambers. Derek has no doubt that’s where Merlin is. Sure enough, when Derek knocks on the door it’s Merlin that answers, a wide grin on his face.

“There you are,” he says and gestures for Stiles and Derek to come inside. “We were afraid you got lost or kidnapped on your way here.”

Stiles laughs, shooting a wink at Derek, “He was just having trouble deciding if he should shave his beard.”

“I see you decided to keep it,” Arthur comments.

“Stiles can be very persuasive when he wants to be,” Derek tells him.

Arthur chuckles, “I have no doubt.” He looks to where Merlin and Stiles are muttering to each other a few feet away. “Merlin, Stiles I’d like to speak with Derek alone. You can see if the knights need anything.”

“Yes sire,” Merlin says and all but drags Stiles out of the room.

Derek watches as Arthur strides across the room towards the window, keeping his back to Derek as he gazes out.

“What is it you wished to speak with me about, Your Majesty?” Derek asks.

“I believe we’re at a place where you can call me Arthur and I can call you Derek, wouldn’t you agree?” Arthur asks.

Derek nods, “Yes sire… Arthur.”

“I’ve heard talk,” Arthur tells him, his eyes flicking towards Derek before moving to look back out the window. “Normally I ignore the gossip of the servant’s. It’s not my place.”

“But not this time?” Derek asks, not liking where this is going.

“No, I don’t believe I can this time,” Arthur says. “But before I speak I need you to know that I am not judging you or criticizing your choices. I am simply curious.”

“About what Arthur?” Derek asks, barely able to stop himself from formally addressing Arthur.

Arthur glances at him, expression telling him that he knows Derek knows what he’s referring to. And he does. He just needs Arthur to say it first. “About your relationship with someone in your service. I heard one of the knights speaking with Merlin about it. Which is the only reason I even gave any thought to it. Gwaine might be… well Gwaine is a lot of things but he allows people to have their secrets. If he was willing to discuss it with Merlin I knew there must be something to it. Is there?”

And what’s Derek supposed to do? Arthur is flat our asking him if he has a relationship with Stiles. Maybe not specifically Stiles, but someone in his service. Derek doesn’t want to _lie_. He needs the king to trust him. And Stiles has the plan. He wants Derek to show Arthur it’s okay to love who he wants. This is the perfect opportunity. Arthur had said himself he wasn’t judging Derek, that he was curious. Maybe he was simply using what he heard as a way to broach the subject. _If he heard anything at all_ , Derek thinks. _M_ _aybe he’s just afraid to bring it up himself_.

“What you heard wasn’t wrong,” Derek tells him, eyes never leaving Arthur.

Arthur nods, keeping his eyes on the window but Derek doubts he’s really seeing anything. “It must be difficult then. To know that at some point you’ll have to marry and take a wife.”

Derek’s brow furrows, “No Arthur, I don’t believe I will.”

Arthur does look at him then, face pinched in confusion. “Surely your advisers have been pressuring you to marry the same way mine have since I was of an old enough age?”

“I might be a King but that doesn’t mean someone else should decide who I love,” Derek says. “I won’t be taking a wife because that’s not what I want. I couldn’t do it. Not when my heart is with someone else."

“I wish that were true for me,” Arthur says, “but Camelot needs an heir. To go after what I want would mean denying the kingdom and its people that.”

“There are others ways to get an heir Arthur,” Derek tells him. “What Camelot needs is a happy King. I believe we both know what would make you happy.”

“And Stiles? He makes you happy?”

Derek isn’t surprised Arthur easily picked up on who he was referring to. Even without the supposed talk he imagines he hasn’t exactly been subtle. Then again, neither has Arthur. “Stiles makes me happy as much as he infuriates me, which as you can imagine is quite a lot.”

Arthur smiles, “I can sympathize. I know about that feeling quite well.”

“I imagine you do,” Derek says, giving Arthur an understanding smile.

“You really believe I should go with my heart?” Arthur asks. “I have had so many people pushing me to marry for strategy or alliances. Now here you are telling me I should marry the person I love even if it’s not… conventional.”

“I am,” Derek says, giving a firm nod. “I believe people might surprise you with how supportive they are Arthur.”

“I hope you’re right,” Arthur sighs. “If not Merlin and I could always run away together and live on a farm.”

Derek finds himself smiling, pleased that Arthur basically admitted his feelings for Merlin. “Sounds nice.”

“It really does,” Arthur agrees, then shakes his head. A small grin appears on his face. “If I’m going to do this I need to do it the right way. And I’m going to need your help.”

“My help?”

“Yes. With wooing Merlin.”

Derek grins, “I think I can manage that. Though I’m not sure how much wooing will be necessary.”

“I need to show him I’m serious. I can’t have him doubting my intentions.” Arthur says, walking over to his wardrobe and throwing open the doors. He starts taking out shirts and holding them up to himself. “Which color do you think?”

“The blue one,” Derek tells him, plucking the tunic up off the chair Arthur had just discarded it on. “It brings out your eyes.”

Arthur grins, “That’s perfect.”

They spend a few hours planning and talking, Arthur curious about how Derek’s relationship with Stiles came to be. Derek explains the best he can, obviously leaving out certain details.

“We spent a lot of time rescuing each other,” Derek tells him. “I realized early on there was something there but I was afraid. I knew neither of us were ready so I waited.”

“What finally made you decide to admit your feelings for him?” Arthur asks.

Derek leans back in his seat, “I almost lost him. I realized that I didn’t care about anything else anymore. I loved him and I wanted to be with him. Life is too short to spend it worrying about what other people might think. Stiles is the person I’m meant to be with, I know that. Almost losing him just showed me that we’d already wasted too much time already.”

Arthur nods, “I guess I can understand that. There have been so many times that I’ve just wanted to scream at Merlin to stop being an idiot and sneaking off and risking his life. Because I do know more than he thinks,” Arthur shakes his head. “I know so much more than he realizes. I’ve just been waiting for him to come to me.”

Derek has no doubt that Arthur is referring to Merlin’s magic. He can’t exactly admit that he knows though. That would lead to a whole different conversation as to _how_. It’s better to keep away from that for now.

“Maybe he’s just scared about how you’ll react,” Derek says.

“I know he is. I wish he wasn’t but I know. I can understand his reasons.”

“Maybe you should try talking to him about it?” Derek suggests. “If you’re going to try to start something romantic with him it would probably be better to have it all out in the open.”

“You’re probably right,” Arthur says, “it’s certainly something to think about. For now, I think it’s time I change and go get what I need for dinner.”

Derek waits while Arthur changes and then the two make their way down to the kitchens. Arthur explains on the way that he’s going to sneak in and get some food, set it out on a blanket by the fire, and then insist on Merlin joining him for the meal. Derek has to admit it’s a good plan, better than some of the others Arthur had come up with. As long as Merlin goes along with it and the two don’t wind up insulting each other.

“You stall and make sure she stays out of the kitchen. I’ll sneak in and grab what we need. Once I’m out you can go and I’ll meet you in my quarters,” Arthur rushes off leaving a confused Derek behind wondering why Arthur would need to sneak past his own cook and how _he_ was supposed distract the terrifying looking woman.

Derek gapes at the woman when she walks up, her hands on her hips. He’s expecting to be told off but instead she smiles down at him. It’s still the most terrifying thing he’s ever experienced. A woman this large and frightening should not be smiling like that.

“What can I do for you, King Derek?” the cook asks.

Derek looks around, pretending that he’s making sure there’s no one around. “I hear that you make the best pies in not just this kingdom, but at least 5 kingdoms.”

The woman’s smile widens, as she leans her hip against the wall. Derek watches as Arthur creeps by, luckily staying out of sight of the woman. Now Derek just has to keep her eyes on him until Arthur comes back out.

“Is that so?” She asks.

“It is,” Derek says, trying not to nod his head too enthusiastically.

“And why are you interested in my pies, Your Majesty?”

Derek leans in, keeping his voice low as he speaks. “I was hoping you could make one for me while I’m here.”

Her grin widens impossibly wider as she looks down at Derek. Derek’s eyes flick to the side as he watches Arthur slip past and tip toe around the corner. At least that’s over. Now he just needs to get away.

“It would be an honor to make a pie for you,” she tells him.

Derek smiles sweetly up at her, “Thank you. I appreciate it greatly. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go meet with King Arthur.”

“Of course,” She tells him, giving him a small courtesy, “You shouldn’t keep the king waiting.”

Derek gives her a small smile and then strides away, trying to keep his pace brisk but not appear as if he’s running. He’s made it to the sitars when he hears the woman bellow, “Hey! Who stole my pastries?”

Derek does run then, almost bumping into Theo on his way up the stairs. Theo looks at him with an amused smile, “Did you steal her pastries, Der?”

Derek sighs, shooting a look down the stairs. He doesn’t see anything or hear her following but he still puts a hand on Theo’s back and directs him up the stairs. “I didn’t but Arthur did. It’s probably best if you steer clear of the kitchens for a while.”

“Noted,” Theo says, falling into step beside him. “So why is Arthur stealing pastries from his own kitchens?”

Derek shrugs, “He has a plan to woo Merlin. As to why he felt he had to steal them, I have no idea.”

“This king is an interesting one.”

Derek grins, “He certainly is. Anyway, what brings you out? Where’s Liam?”

“That’s who I was looking for actually,” Theo says. “I can’t find him and I’m afraid he might be lost.”

“Most likely,” Derek says, “but I’m sure someone will help him find his way. Or you can use that nose of yours and track him. I’m sure you know Liam’s scent pretty well by now.”

Theo blushes, ducking his head. “I don’t.”

“Whatever you say,” Derek mutters, “but it can’t hurt to try. Liam probably doesn’t need to be wandering around Camelot by himself.”

It’s then that they see Cora and Lydia walking down the hall, along with Liam. Derek smirks when Theo growls at the sight of Cora and Lydia practically hanging off Liam. Which is ridiculous because Cora and Lydia only have eyes for each other.

“Hey Der,” Cora says, smiling up at him as they approach. “Fancy seeing you here.”

“Have you not talked with Arthur yet?” Lydia asks. “I know he was looking for you earlier.”

“No I’ve talked to him. He just needs my help with something,” Derek tells them.

He regrets it the moment Cora’s eyes light up mischievously, “Ooh what is it?”

“None of your business,” Derek says. He looks around, training his ears to make sure no one is lurking in the shadows. Satisfied they’re alone he speaks, “How are things going on your front? Have you found anything?”

Lydia sighs, flipping her hair over her shoulder. “Unfortunately no. The one time we went to the library we got asked if we were lost. Which is rude. But apparently the stuffy old librarian isn’t used to women in his library. I’d send Stiles but a lot of the titles are in Latin. He wouldn’t know what to look for.”

“But we’ll keep trying,” Cora says. “We’re not about to let some old man tell us that we can’t read. Or well, that Lydia can’t. I know some Latin but not near as much as her.”

Derek raises an eyebrow, “When did you learn Latin?”

Cora shrugs, “I had a lot of free time as a kid in South America so I taught myself Latin.”

“Impressive,” Theo grins, earning a growl from Liam.

When all eyes turn to him he blushes, “Sorry. I’m just… having trouble adjusting.”

It’s not a lie. Liam seems to be the one struggling the most with their new setting, Nowhere near as bad as the Sheriff is, but he’s still having a hard time.

“It’ll be okay Liam,” Theo says. “We’ll figure this out and then we’ll get home. For now, you should just enjoy it. How many times are you going to be able to visit Camelot?”

There’s noise to Derek’s left that has them all jumping slightly as the door opens to reveal Arthur. “I thought I heard voices out here. Is everything alright?”

Derek nods, giving him a small smile. “Yes sire, I was just talking with everyone since I haven’t seen much of them since we arrived.”

Arthur nods, “Of course. I’ll just be in here when you’re ready Derek.”

He gives the group another smile before disappearing inside and closing the door. Derek turns back towards the group with a sigh, “I should get in there.”

There are some nods and murmured acknowledgments but otherwise the groups attention stays focused on the door.

“Go enjoy yourselves,” Derek tells them before slipping inside the room and closing the door.

Arthur is a wreck when Derek walks in. Which is an amazing feat considering Derek just saw him barely a minute ago.

“Arthur?” Derek tries, stepping closer to the frantic king.

Arthur turns his nervous gaze to Derek, “I don’t think I can do this alone. I’m going to need you to stay.”

“Stay?”

Arthur nods and then gestures towards the basket of food. “There’s enough there for you and Stiles to join us.”

“You want Stiles and I to join you?” Derek asks, trying to understand what’s happening.

“Yes, it might be easier with you and Stiles here. Merlin knows about you two. It might help to see you together.”

Derek doesn’t know how to argue with that logic. Which is how he finds himself essentially on a double date. One he never would have thought he’d find himself on in a million years.

It’s not horrible or awkward. He doesn’t have to pretend here with Stiles, not now that both Arthur and Merlin know. Arthur and Merlin are different here too. They’re both more relaxed than Derek can remember seeing. He hasn’t been here long, sure, but he can already tell how stressed both of them always seem to be. So he’s grateful that for now they at least get to be happy.

They laugh and they joke and just seem at ease with each other. At one point Merlin throws a grape at Arthur’s head but Arthur manages to move in time to catch it in his mouth. Merlin rolls his eyes, but throws another just to watch Arthur catch it again.

Derek looks down when he feels Stiles resting his head on his shoulder to find his boyfriend blinking tiredly up at him with a grin on his face. “Hey.”

Derek can’t help but grin back, “Hey yourself. You look like you’re about to pass out.”

Stiles nods, barely suppressing a yawn. “I‘m tired.”

“We shouldn’t keep you any longer then,” Arthur says, rising to his feet. “It is getting late.”

Derek stands up, holding out a hand to help Stiles up. Stiles grins and allows himself to be hoisted up. He has to hide his grin when he looks over to see Arthur doing the same for a confused looking Merlin.

“I can manage from here Merlin,” Arthur tells him. “You should head down and get some sleep yourself.

Merlin looks surprised but gives Arthur a pleased grin, “Thank you sire.”

The three bid Arthur good night before heading down the hall. Derek expects to say good night to Merlin and then be able to slip inside with Stiles and get some sleep. Instead he looks over to find both Merlin and Stiles looking much more awake.

“The beast is close,” Merlin mutters. “There was talk of it being in a neighboring village.”

“So what do we do?” Stiles asks.

“ _We_ aren’t doing anything,” Merlin tells them. “I’m going alone to look for it and you’re staying here and going to sleep.”

Stiles bristles at that, “Like hell we are. We were sent here because you need help with this thing, so let us help.”

Merlin looks like he wants to argue, but he keeps us mouth shut. “You can come. But stay out of the way and let me deal with it.”

Derek wants to argue that he knows his fair share about supernatural creatures but he holds his tongue. Now isn’t the time. “Fine. Now what do we do?”

Turns out, what they needed to do was sneak past the guards and out of the castle. What they’re not expecting is to see Arthur standing over a pair of unconscious guards. Merlin and Stiles hang back while Derek approaches Arthur. Even without speaking he knows that Merlin needs to go off without Arthur but he still needs someone to stay with the King.

Derek furrows his brow in confusion, “Excuse me Your Majesty but why do you need to knock out your own guards?”

Arthur sighs, stepping over one of the unconscious men and over to Derek, “With the beast lurking in the woods they never would have let me out here alone, king or not.”

Derek nods, falling into step beside Arthur as he heads towards the woods. He can understand why. Arthur is king, they don’t want him out here alone and unprotected. He has no doubt Arthur can protect himself but it’s probably better to be safe. Except apparently right now since Derek is assisting him. Though Derek supposes he’s not really alone with Derek here.

Derek listens as Stiles and Merlin quietly run ahead. Despite trusting both Merlin and Stiles’ magic, Derek can’t help but hope they don’t run across the beast. Then again, he’s not sure how good he’d do against it right now. He can’t exactly wolf out in front of Arthur.

He frowns when he hears Stiles and Merlin stop ahead. Not only that, but the normal sounds of nature seem to have died away. If Derek listens closely he can hear the sound of growling and claws raking across trees. The beast isn’t on the ground, it’s in the trees above them. Derek knows what he has to do.

He turns to Arthur with an apologetic smile and gestures ahead, “I saw Merlin and Stiles slip out in search of the beast. That’s why I came out here. I wanted to find them.”

Arthur frowns and pinches the bridge of his nose, muttering something about idiotic servants as he goes in the direction Derek had pointed. Derek watches him go and then veers to the right. He’s not disappointed when he hears the sound of the beast following him. It’s not a beast at all, he realizes. It’s a werewolf, one that has gone feral and is trapped in its wolf form.

There’s a growl and then the sound of paws hitting the ground behind him. Derek turns, letting his shift take over as he faces the wolf. When he does his breath catches. The wolf looks far too familiar and it makes his blood run cold. He’s staring into the familiar blue eyes of his uncle. The beast is Peter.

While his wolf looks like a normal black wolf now, just maybe a little larger, and he doesn’t look anything like the massive twisted form he took on when he became an Alpha. Derek still knows it. He can smell it. This is Peter standing in front of him.

He can only watch in frozen horror as Peter stalks towards him, still growling. Derek growl back, lower than Peter is. It’s not a threat but a warning. He realizes now that’s what Peter is doing as well, he’s warning him.

“Peter?” Derek asks, words coming out shakier than he’d intended. “Peter? Are you in there?”

Peter stops just in front of Derek, breathing heavy. He sniffs the air and then tilts his head as his eyes stay focused on Derek. There’s some familiarity there then.

“It’s me,” Derek tries again, trying his best to keep his voice low and calm. He doesn’t want to scare Peter off, but he also doesn’t want to draw attention of the others. “Peter, it’s me. It’s Derek.”

Peter continues to state at him with his head tilted, probably battling with his instincts versus what he knows deep down. Derek knows what he has to do. He _hates_ it. He hasn’t exactly been on the best footing with Peter but before he disappeared Peter had at least been trying. He has to hope that’s still the case, even if he is trapped as a wolf.

Taking a deep breath, Derek drops to his knees and tilts his head, baring his neck to the wolf in front of him. There’s a rumbling from Peter and then a wet snout is nosing at his neck. Derek’s afraid for a moment when Peter whines and starts licking at his neck but Derek quickly realizes he must recognize him, at least by scent.

When Peter turns back, Derek looks at him, grabbing him gently by the scruff of his neck. He can hear Arthur, Merlin, and Stiles coming closer. He needs to get Peter away in case Arthur tries to kill him.

Derek can see recognition in Peter’s eyes now, but under all that is _fear_. He reeks of it now. Derek has a feeling it has to do with a lot more than the group of people walking towards them.

“We’re going to figure this out,” Derek whispers. “I promise you. We’ll figure this out and we’ll get you back.” He glances over Peter’s shoulder when he hears a branch snap nearby. “For now you need to get out of here. Stay out of site. I’ll come find you.”

Peter bobs his head, his tongue lolling out in amusement and then he’s breaking away from Derek and tearing through the trees.

“Derek?” Stiles asks, rushing over to where Derek is still on his knees. “Der? Are you okay?”

Derek wants to tell him that no, he’s not okay. But he can’t do that right now. He can’t let on to what he knows. Not with Arthur here. Derek smiles, using Stiles’ body in front of him to cover up the prints Peter had left, before standing up.

“I thought I saw some prints but I was wrong,” Derek says, “Did you all have any luck?”

Arthur shakes his head, “No. It’s as if the thing has just disappeared. There aren’t any signs of it on the ground.”

“Maybe it’s not even near here?” Stiles suggests.

“Possibly,” Arthur sighs. He shakes his head, running a hand through his hair. Derek can understand how hard this must be. There’s something out there hurting his people and he feels helpless to stop it. It doesn’t make it any easier now that Derek knows it’s Peter. Even knowing what he does about Peter he can’t accept that Peter is just out there killing people. Peter is a manipulative bastard, sure. But he smelled so afraid. Whatever is happening it’s not completely on him.

“Derek? You coming?”

Derek’s eyes snap to where Stiles is waiting at the edge of the trees, Arthur and Merlin a little ways away. He gives a final look to where Peter had run off and then turns around, takes Stiles’ hand, and follows Arthur and Merlin back to the castle. Whatever is happening they’ll just have to figure it out in the morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this chapter took so long to update but this fic has become complicated so I've been trying to work the plot out. Hopefully the next chapter won't take as long to post. Thanks for everyone that's still reading. Kudos/Comments make my day <3  
> [My tumblr](http://tabbytabbytabby.tumblr.com/)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this was supposed to be on a hiatus but here we are. I've had a lot of this chapter done for a while and wanted to get it out there. It's both a Theo and a Merlin chapter.

It’s their fourth day in Camelot and Theo has to admit it’s not all that bad. He misses having electricity and an actual shower to bathe in. But those are little things, at least to him. He’s in Camelot. Living as a knight in King Arthur’s castle. Never in his wildest dreams did he ever think something like this could happen.

Sure, there’s the fact that something is out there hurting people. And according to Derek it’s his uncle Peter. Derek seems to think he’s not acting of his own free will, which from the looks of everyone that has met Peter no one seems to buy. Derek seems sure though, so Theo is willing to trust his judgement.

Other than that things are going good. Their cover hasn’t been blown, at least not to anyone they haven’t willingly told. Theo gets along great with all the knights, especially Gwaine. Gwaine might be a knight but Theo can tell he has very little respect for the rules. He’ll follow the big ones and listen to Arthur’s orders with only a little back talk, but there’s always this mischievous look in his eye that tells Theo he’s going to find a way to get into some trouble.

So Theo has been having a great time. He just wishes Liam was as well. Theo can tell Liam is in awe of the fact that they’re in Camelot but he seems more on edge than excited. Jenna though, is the complete opposite. Sure, she’s in awe but she’s probably more excited than any of them to be here. She loves the dresses and roaming the castle and getting to talk to everyone from this time. She’s practically in her element.

Which is why Theo shouldn’t be surprised when she suggests that the group go horseback riding with Arthur and the knights.

“I really don’t think it’s a good idea Jenna,” Theo tells her.

“Excuse me,” Jenna says, wearing a look smug enough to rival Theo’s. “In case you’re forgetting I was once a queen. And as your former queen and _hopefully_ your mother in law once you and Liam get your acts together, you should do as I say.”

Theo sighs, knowing there’s no point in arguing with her. Never mind the fact that most of them have no clue how to ride a horse. Theo only does because he convinced Gwaine to teach him how to ride. It meant telling the knight the truth, of course. Or a version of it at least. Gwaine had surprisingly believed him, saying that he’s seen a lot of weird things in his life so he wasn’t about to deny that people could hop through time.

He’d only been too happy to give Theo a crash course in horseback riding. To Theo’s surprise it went surprisingly well. It didn’t take long at all for him to pick it up, which he is more than grateful for. It helped that Gwaine was patient and made the learning fun. Theo had almost fallen off the horse when Gwaine had winked and told him if he could ride a horse then he could ride anything.

Theo hadn’t let that one slide, he’d nudged Gwaine in the shoulder before responding, “Have a lot of experience in that area, do you?”

Gwaine hadn’t missed a beat with his reply, “Well you’ve seen Percival. He was built to be rode. You though, you look like you were made for riding. Your Liam is a lucky guy.”

He’d only laughed when Theo had blushed and stammered out that he and Liam aren’t together. The look in Gwaine’s eyes told Theo he didn’t quite believe him.

Now Theo is a little grateful for all those horse riding lessons with Gwaine. He feels a little bad for the others though.

“You do realize this could go spectacularly wrong, right?” Theo asks.

Jenna just smiles sweetly, “I have a feeling it will all work out just fine.”

Liam of course groans and complains when Theo informs him of his mother's plan. “Why? Half of us have never even been on a horse. Is she trying to blow our cover?”

“Well if you’re worried about you not being able ride we can just say that your princely bottom is too fragile for a saddle,” Theo smirks.

“I’ll have you know my bottom is far from fragile,” Liam growls.

“Oh yeah?” Theo asks, stepping up into Liam’s space, “How would you know? Or is there a kinky side to you that I don’t know about?”

Liam blushes, “There’s a lot that you don’t know about me yet.”

“Yet?” Theo’s hands moves to Liam’s hips without his permission. He has no idea what he’s doing, what’s made him suddenly be so bold. “Does that mean you’re going to show me?”

Theo can hear Liam’s heart hammering in his chest as he brings a hand up to Theo’s chest. Theo half expects Liam to push him away but instead he fists Theo’s tunic and pulls him closer until their lips are barely an inch apart. “It depends on if you think you can handle it.”

“I’m more than capable of handling it,” Theo murmurs, brushing their noses together.

Liam surges forward and claims Theo’s lips in a hard, unyielding kiss. He’s pulling away before Theo even has a chance to respond. His eyes are wide and apologetic and Theo hates it. Especially when he holds his hands up and starts backing away. “I shouldn’t have done that.”

“Liam…” Theo tries to take a step towards him but Liam shakes his head.

“Let’s just forget I did that, okay?” Liam says, voice pleading.

It breaks Theo’s heart a little bit. He finally got a taste of what he’s been craving and here Liam is wanting to brush it aside and act as if it never happened. Liam’s turning and heading towards the door, reaching for the handle at the same time it opens and Derek walks in. He shoots one last look to Theo before bolting out the door.

“What if I can’t?” Theo asks, a little too late.

He knows Liam hears him though. He can hear his sharp intake of breath before his pace quickens.

“Did I interrupt something?” Derek asks, closing the door and turning to look at Theo.

Theo shakes his head, “I’m honestly not sure.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Theo listens to make sure Liam is gone and out of earshot before hissing, “He kissed me!”

Derek raises an eyebrow, “Isn’t that a good thing? You’ve been pining after him for years.”

“Yeah _I_ have. But I have no idea what’s going on inside his head,” Theo sighs, running a hand down his face. “Sometimes I think he returns my feelings but then other times he’s so cold and aloof.”

“But he kissed you, shouldn’t that should make it pretty obvious?”

“You’d think. But then he was pulling away and saying he wanted to forget it even happened before all but running out of here. What the hell am I supposed to do with that?”

“He’s probably still figuring things out,” Derek tells him, resting a hand on his shoulder. “But I’m sure he’ll get there eventually.”

“I hope so,” Theo mutters. “Did you need something?”

“I just wanted to talk about Peter,” Derek says. “I doubt he’ll show up while we’re out but I still wanted to make sure you’d help keep an eye out.”

Theo nods, “Of course.”

Derek squeezes his shoulder, “Thank you.”

“We should go,” Theo says. “The others are probably waiting.”

“It’s going to be interesting seeing how well some of us adapt to riding a horse.”

Theo grins, “Oh I know. That’s why I’ve been learning. What about you? Do you know how to ride a horse?”

Derek shrugs, “I’m decent.”

Decent for Derek turns out to be amazing. The horse immediately warms up to Derek, while some of the others struggle a bit. Liam and Stiles for example. Stiles’ horse almost doesn’t let him on, at least not until Derek comes over and calms her down enough for Stiles to climb on.

Stiles pouts, “I was handling it.”

“Not fast enough,” Derek tells him, “If we would have waited for you to calm her it would have been night before we left here.”

Stiles glares at him, “You’re on thin ice mister.”

“He sasses his king almost as much as Merlin sasses Arthur,” Gwaine says, bringing his horse to a stop next to Theo’s.  “Are they always like that?”

“Sometimes they’re worse,” Theo says, shooting the knight a grin.

He hears some cursing and turns to see Liam struggling to get up onto his horse, “Do you need help Liam?”

Liam sends him a half-hearted glare, “I got it.”

“Here sweetheart,” Jenna says, stepping up next to Liam. She talks quietly to the horse as she pets her, smiling when the horse nudges her hand. “You should pet her to get her to trust you.”

Liam sighs but does as he’s told. The horse still seems a little wary of Liam but she lets him on. Once Liam is situated and everyone else has climbed on their horses they walk through the courtyard, through the lower town, and then through the gates. The guards stationed there nod at them as they pass and then they’re on their way. They ride for a while and it goes pretty smoothly. The horses seem to be content for the most part, probably because their riders are.

Liam rides next to him, his brow furrowed as he listens in on the conversation Jenna is having with Gwaine.

“You really are a beauty, My Lady,” Gwaine is telling her. Theo fights the urge to roll his eyes. He knows enough by now to know that Gwaine will flirt with anyone. Liam must not have gotten the memo because he growls. Theo shoots him a warning look as Gwaine continues. “Your hair looks as if it has been kissed by the sun. But you are more than beautiful. You have a sharp wit, sharper than anyone I’ve ever met. You are the perfect woman.”

Jenna smiles at him, a light blush coating her cheeks. She’s about to open her mouth to speak, most likely to gently let Gwaine down, but Liam beats her to it. “She’s married,” he growls.

Gwaine shoots him a look before giving John an apologetic smile, "Apologies Lord John. But a woman this beautiful should be admired and often."

John just stares at him wide eyed for a moment, clearly still getting used to his new station. And the fact that he’s married. Then his face clears and he gives Jenna a loving smile, reaching between them to take her hand. "Sometimes I'm so struck by her beauty that it's hard to believe that we're married."

From next to Theo Stiles whispers, “Great job Dad!”

John grins at him over his shoulder, "I can be smooth. How do you think I picked up your mother?"

He raises his hands attempting to do the finger guns, but immediately has to reach for the reigns when he almost falls off the horse.

Stiles snorts, “Smooth? Sure Dad, you’re _real_ _smooth_.”

“You don’t really have room to talk,” Derek tells him. “You tried to seduce me by singing in a tree, and almost fell out and broke something.”

“Yes, but you caught me. And now here we are. I’d say I did a pretty good job.”

Derek sighs, “Because lucky for you I’d already fallen for you long before that.”

Theo switches places with Jenna and moves up to ride with Gwaine while Jenna rides next to Liam.

“Since you’re new here how about I point out some of my favorite plants and trees?” Gwaine suggests. There’s a mischievous glint in his eye that Theo doesn’t quite understand, at least not until Gwaine starts speaking again. “That one.” He points to the plant to his left. “That one.” He points to the tree just up ahead. “That one.” He gestures over to his right. “And that one.” This time he points to Percival.

Percival sighs, “I’m not a plant or a tree, Gwaine.”

Gwaine smirks, “Maybe not, but you’re as tall as some trees and you have a quite a bush.”

Gwaine shoots a wink in his direction which has Percival blushing and riding off to join Elyan and Leon. Arthur shoots a look over his shoulder at Gwaine, “What did you say to poor Percival this time?”

“Nothing Your Majesty,” Gwaine says. “I was just pointing out my favorite plants and trees to Theo here.”

“Let me guess,” Arthur says. “All you were doing was pointing to the trees and saying _that one_?”

Merlin laughs and falls back a bit to talk with them, “If you’re really interested I can tell you all about the different plants and trees out here.”

Theo nods. He’s a biology nerd. That can include plants. And Camelot is full of different plant species that he’s probably never even heard of. Of course he’s interested. Merlin beams at him at starts pointing out and actually explaining the different plant life they pass. Theo listens attentively, trying to soak up as much knowledge as he can. It hits him again that this is Merlin he’s talking to. _The_ Merlin. And he’s talking to Theo about plants.

Theo hears a shout from behind him and turns just in time to see Liam being thrown backwards off his horse. He groans in pain, glaring up at the animal. Theo is off his own horse in an instant, rushing to Liam’s side. “You alright?”

Liam nods, attempting to stand up, only to wince in pain and stumble. Theo puts an arm around Liam, attempting to steady him.

“I think it’s sprained,” Liam says, glaring down at his injured ankle.

Theo knows it will heal, it just might take a while. Especially since he can’t exactly trigger his healing with so many people around. He watches as Liam attempts to walk, grimacing when his foot hits the ground.

“You can’t walk like this,” Theo tells him.

“Yeah well I’m not about to get back on that horse,” Liam snaps back.

“I doubt the poor girl would let you back on,” Derek says, grinning brightly over at them.

Theo grips Liam’s shoulder when he hears the beta let out a low growl, “Easy. He’s just messing with you.”

“I know,” Liam mumbles, shoulders slumped.

Theo sighs, “Well if you’re not walking we’ll have to do this a different way.”

“What do you…?”

Liam’s words die in his throat as he gives a startled shout when Theo bends down and swoops Liam up into his arms. He tries to keep his heart under control, knowing how this close proximity to Liam can affect him. The last thing he needs is to make things awkward, especially after what happened earlier.

He hears Stiles whistle, “Now that’s how you do it. Why don’t you carry me like that, Der?”

Theo is sure Derek rolls his eyes, “You didn’t seem to like it the last time I did it.”

“Yeah well I was bleeding and worried I was going to lose my toe. I couldn’t enjoy it. I can now though,” Stiles says, grinning at Derek. “What do you say?”

Derek stares at Stiles, keeping his face blank and tone flat. “No.”

Stiles sighs earning an eye roll from Derek, “Theo is a better boyfriend than you and they’re not even dating yet.”

Theo turns his face back to Liam when he hears the beta make a strangled noise. “You okay?”

Liam nods frantically, “Yeah I just moved my leg weird.”

"I thought you knew how to ride a horse," Theo says, smirking down at Liam.

Liam rolls his eyes, "Yeah well I'm better at riding other things."

Liam hisses in pain when Theo's steps falter causing them to stumble into a tree.

“Save a horse, ride a knight!” Stiles laughs, then immediately starts singing his own version of Save A Horse, Ride A Cowboy. Liam groans, burying his face in Theo’s neck in an attempt to hide his face when Gwaine, Percival, Elyan, and Cora join in the second time around.

 _Cause I saddle up my horse_  
_And I ride into the city_  
_I make a lot of noise_  
_Cause the lords and ladies_  
_They are so pretty_  
_Riding up and down the way_  
_On my old stud Theo_  
_And the lords and ladies say_  
_Save a horse, ride a knight_  
_Everybody says_  
_Save a horse, ride a knight_

Theo’s eyes widen at some of the words, sure that his own face must be bright red by now. It takes a lot to embarrass him usually. He was going to kill Stiles for starting this. Now all he can do is tie his horse to Liam’s and grab the reins and start walking, doing his best to ignore the group as they start singing again.

“You have interesting music in your kingdom,” Theo hears Arthur telling Derek.

Derek sighs, shooting a fond look back at Stiles, “You have no idea.”

After walking for a couple miles Theo convinces Liam to ride on his horse with him. Liam reluctantly agrees. As soon as they’re situated on the horse Theo starts regretting his idea. It was bad enough carrying Liam and having him tucked so closely in his arms.

It’s even worse now with Liam on the horse behind him, his arms wrapped tightly around Theo’s waist and head resting against his back. He gets a knowing look from Derek which has him wanting to flash his eyes. Derek simply grins and rides ahead to join Arthur and Merlin.

It takes longer to get back to the citadel than it did to leave, or at least it feels like it does. In reality it probably takes around the same amount of time. To Theo it seems to stretch on forever. Eventually they’re moving through the gates and trotting back up to the castle steps. Theo helps Liam off the horse and then he’s being escorted by Gwaine and Arthur down to see Gaius. While some of them know Liam doesn’t really need to see the court physician because he’s probably mostly healed by now, there are still some who aren’t aware. For the sake of their secret it’s best to go along with them.

Theo heads up to his room, a little surprised when Merlin follows him inside. Then again, Arthur is downstairs so he’s not needing Merlin at the moment. Merlin doesn’t say anything though, he just goes about pacing the room, sometimes stopping to absentmindedly tidy something up. Theo thinks it’s the perfect opportunity to broach a certain subject with Merlin.

“You know it would be easier if you just told him,” Theo says, watching as Merlin paces around the room.

Merlin pauses just long enough to shoot Theo a look, “I’m not telling him about my magic. It’s not the time.”

“Really?” Theo asks, looking unimpressed. “You think that facing some supernatural creature that your magic can probably help stop isn’t the time?”

Merlin sighs, “It’s complicated.”

“Of course it is,” Theo says, “but I wasn’t talking about your magic. I was talking about how you’re clearly in love with Arthur.”

Merlin stills, eyes wide as he whirls around to face Theo. Theo looks far too smug, Merlin on the other hand looks panicked, “I don’t… that’s not…. It’s not like that.”

Theo snorts, “Really? Could have fooled me. People that aren’t in love don’t look at each other the way you two do.”

“Now you’re just being crazy,” Merlin says. “No matter how I feel there’s no way Arthur could love me. Not like that.”

“Merlin,” Theo says. “He does. I can tell. You just need to talk to him.”

Merlin’s shoulders drop, “I don’t know how.”

“Maybe starting with the truth _Mer-_ lin,” Arthur says, starting both of them when he appears in the doorway. He snorts at their startled faces, “You both can relax. I know. I’ve known for a while.”

“About what?” Merlin asks, placing his hands behind his too straight back.

“About both,” Arthur says, stepping further into the room, bringing himself closer to Merlin. “Your magic? I had my suspicions for a while. It was only confirmed a little over a year ago.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Why didn’t you?” Arthur counters, eyes looking a mixture between curious and hurt. “All these years you kept your secret. Did you ever plan to tell me?”

“I didn’t know how you would react sire,” Merlin tells him. “We both know your fathers views on magic. While you were oftentimes more lenient I didn’t want to put you in a position where you had to choose.”

“That’s what worried you?” Arthur asks, voice quiet as he walks closer to Merlin. “The position you would put me in? Not your own safety?”

“I knew the risks when I stayed,” Merlin tells him. “I accepted it. All I knew was that I needed to protect you.”

“Out of duty?”

Merlin shakes his head, “At first, maybe. But then I got to know you. I watched you grow and become a great king, but more than that a great man. One that I respect and…”

“And what Merlin?” Arthur asks, moving until he’s standing right in front of him. “Love?”

Merlin feels his heart pounding in his chest as his eyes finally come up to meet Arthur’s. They’re not mocking or angry but full of hope. “Yes. I protect you because I care about you. I love you, and I need to keep you safe.”

“Did you ever think that I would want to keep you safe as well?” Arthur asks. “That maybe it could have been beneficial to both of us for me to know about your magic?”

“Just about my magic?”

“About the other thing as well,” Arthur grins, leaning in close enough that their noses brush. “Did you ever wonder why I never married, Merlin? I couldn’t, not knowing that my heart already belonged to someone else. Belonged to _you_. It took talking to Derek to make me understand it, but now I do. I know what I want and that’s you.”

“But an heir…”

“Forget about an heir,” Arthur says. “It doesn’t matter.”

“It does though!” Merlin says. He tries to take a step back but Arthur stops him with firm hands on his hips. “Arthur you need…”

Arthur stops whatever argument Merlin has with a kiss. Merlin squeaks, moving to pull away, “Arthur, you can’t just do that.”

“What I need is for you to shut up and kiss me,” Arthur smirks, leaning in and kissing Merlin again. He gets much less resistance this time. “You do want to kiss me, don’t you Merlin?”

Merlin sighs, moving a hand up to Arthur’s hair. “I do. But don’t think you can just kiss me whenever you want me to shut up.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Arthur says, leaning in to meet Merlin’s lips in another kiss.

Merlin knows they have other things to worry about, but right now he can’t be bothered caring. Arthur’s kisses consume him, making everything else fall away. All he can focus on is the wet glide of Arthur’s lips against his own, the way his tongue feels when it explores his mouth, the low groan Arthur makes when Merlin tugs on his hair.

Arthur starts walking, hands working their way under Merlin’s tunic and mouth trailing kisses from Merlin’s ear to his jaw as he goes. It’s only when Merlin feels his legs hit the edge of the bed that he remembers something, “Theo!”

Arthur pulls back, brow furrowing as he looks at Merlin, “Excuse me?”

Merlin glances towards the bed, finding it empty, “I forgot Theo had been in here.”

“He left,” Arthur moves his lips back to Merlin’s jaw, pulling uselessly at the neckerchief around Merlin’s neck. “If you value this thing you better take it off or I’ll rip it off myself.”

Merlin chuckles, moving back out of Arthur’s grip. “Not in here.”

“And why not?”

“Because Theo is your guest and these are his chambers. I’m not about to use them for whatever it is you have planned.”

“I’ll show you what I have planned,” Arthur says, trying to step closer to Merlin only for him to back away. “ _Mer-_ lin.”

Merlin isn’t sure what it is that makes him do it, maybe the adorable pout on Arthur’s face. He’s feeling light and free and it makes him want to be a little reckless. Merlin laughs, turning and taking off towards the door. He shoots a grin over his shoulder at Arthur, “If you want me, you have to catch me sire.”

Then he’s gone, leaving Arthur calling after him. It’s not long before he hears Arthur’s footsteps behind him. Merlin hollers out apologies as he weaves his way among the occupants of the castle. He can hear Arthur doing the same. No one seems the least bit surprised by their behavior.

Merlin lets out a surprised yell when he finds himself being grabbed from behind and then pinned to the wall. Arthur covers his body with his own, eyes wild as he looks at him. Merlin can tell what Arthur is thinking, can see it in the way his eyes linger hungrily on his lips. “Arthur, people will see us.”

“Let them,” Arthur says, moving in and claiming Merlin’s lips in a needy kiss.

Merlin whines low in his throat, clinging to Arthur’s shoulders. He reluctantly pulls away, only to have Arthur move down to his neck, muttering when Merlin’s neckerchief gets in the way. That doesn’t stop him from biting and licking at whatever skin he can reach, causing Merlin to moan and his hips to buck forward.

He feels Arthur smirk against his skin, “Are you enjoying yourself Merlin?”

Merlin lets out a breathless laugh, rolling his hips against Arthur’s again. “Don’t act is if you’re not sire.”

Arthur’s eyes have a dangerous glint to them as he leans down to kiss Merlin again. He slips a hand around Merlin’s back and pulls him closer. “I am enjoying myself. But I would enjoy myself more if we were somewhere more private.”

“I think we all would,” a voice sounds to Merlin’s right. It almost causes him to push Arthur away until he realizes who it belongs to. Stiles gives them an apologetic smile. “Sorry. I was just… Derek’s room is right here.”

He points to the door directly across from where Merlin and Arthur are. They were so close to Arthur’s chambers but not close enough. Arthur actually seems relaxed despite the fact that they’ve just been spotted.

In fact, he rubs his nose along Merlin’s jaw as he stares over at Derek and Stiles, “I trust you both know how to be discrete.”

Derek nods, “Of course Arthur.”

“Good, now if you’ll excuse us…” Arthur takes Merlin’s hand and starts leading him down to the hall.

They both stop and turn when they hear Stiles calling after them. It’s even more confusing when Stiles hands Arthur a small bottle of something. “I think you’re going to need this, just warm it up with your fingers before you put it… well _there_.”

Arthur and Merlin just stare at Stiles, watching as he backs up with a wide grin on his face. He winks when he reaches Derek’s door, calling out a “have fun!” before disappearing inside. Arthur stares from the bottle to Merlin before shrugging and leading him the rest of the way to his chambers.

Once they’re inside Merlin shuts the door and locks it before backing Arthur against it. Arthur smirks at him, his hands moving to Merlin’s hips to draw him closer. Merlin doesn’t hesitate before kissing Arthur. Now that he knows this is something he’s allowed to do he doesn’t want to waste any more time thinking. He just wants to touch and taste and feel.

Arthur breaks away, tossing the bottle Stiles had handed him onto the bed before moving his hands down to grab his tunic and lift it over his head in one fluid motion. Merlin sighs, “Funny how you have so much trouble getting into clothes yourself but no trouble removing them.”

Arthur smirks, moving Merlin’s hands to the ties of his trousers, “I think I might need some help here, Merlin.”

Merlin fondly rolls his eyes, kissing Arthur as his hands work on the ties of Arthur’s trousers. He pulls back with a grin, eyes flicking down to where Arthur’s pants are pooled around his feet. “I think you forgot to remove your boots sire.”

“I don’t think so,” Arthur says, his knuckles brushing across Merlin’s cheek. “Maybe I just want you on your knees Merlin.”

“All in due time sire,” Merlin says, pulling away from Arthur and backing towards the bed. He bends down to unlace his own boots and kick them off as well as his socks. His hands then move to his neckerchief only to stop when he hears Arthur growl, “No. Let me do that.”

Merlin nods and moves his hands to the hem of his shirt, eyes flicking up to meet Arthur’s, “What about this sire?”

“You can take off everything but the neckerchief. Then I want you on the bed.”

“Is that an order, sire?” Merlin smirks, hands slowly lifting his shirt up. He can feel Arthur’s eyes tracking the movement. Rather than making him embarrassed, it makes him feel empowered. Arthur might think he has all the control but Merlin knows that’s not completely true. Once the shirt is off he quickly kicks off his trousers and then slowly crawls his way across the bed. So many times he’s dreamed of being in this bed. It’s hard to believe it’s finally happening.

He hears a sharp intake of breath and then some cursing. Merlin flips over onto his back with his head resting on the pillows as he stares at Arthur. Arthur is working on unlacing his boots, his eyes constantly moving back to Merlin. Merlin grins as he brings a hand down to leisurely stroke his cock.

“It’s quite lonely in this big bed by myself,” Merlin comments, letting out a sigh when he thumbs across the head of his dick. He runs a hand down his chest to his nipple moaning when he flicks the sensitive bud. “I wish these were your hands on me, sire. I’ve imagined the way they would feel.”

“Have you now?” Arthur asks, walking towards the bed now that he’s free of his boots. He has a predatory look in his eyes that makes Merlin shiver. “Where have you imagined my hands Merlin?”

“Everywhere,” Merlin sighs. “My hips, my thighs, my stomach, gripping my hair as I suck your cock, and here,” his hand continues to stroke his cock slowly, “working over my cock the same way I am, but probably better. I bet you’d feel so good.”

Merlin barely has any warning before Arthur throws himself on the bed and straddles Merlin. He bats Merlin’s hand out of the way and starts stroking at the same time he leans down and claims Merlin’s lips in a hot and dirty kiss. Merlin groans and reaches out, pleased when he finds Arthur’s cock and finally takes it in his hand. It’s hot and heavy as it slides through his fingers.

Arthur pulls away far too soon, much to Merlin’s dismay. He doesn’t go far, just reaches behind him to grab the bottle Stiles had given them. He’s not sure what it is, at least not until Arthur opens the lid and puts a bit on his fingers. It looks wet and slippery and a little bit thicker than some of the oils he’s seen.

Arthur closes the lid and moves his hand down to his cock, groaning when his hand glides easily across his thick member. Merlin wants his hands back on it but he also wants to try other things.

“How do we do this?” Merlin asks, gesturing down at the bottle in Arthur’s hands.

“I don’t know Merlin,” Arthur frowns. “There aren’t exactly written steps to follow.”

Merlin takes the bottle from Arthur and laughs when he pulls off a piece of parchment that was stuck to the bottle. “Actually there is. And they’re erm… very detailed.”

“What?” Arthur blushes when he takes the parchment from Merlin and reads it over. He clears his throat as he looks up at Merlin, “And you...want to try this?”

Merlin shrugs, leaning back against the pillows, “I do. It’s supposed to feel good. Great even.”

Arthur looks from the bottle in his hands up to Merlin’s face, “If you’re sure.”

“Arthur,” Merlin brings a hand up to his face, caressing it gently. “Is this what _you_ want?”

“Of course it is Merlin. It’s just new for me. I don’t know how good I’ll be at it.”

Merlin sits up, slowly running a hand down Arthur’s chest as he kisses him softly. “It’s new for me as well, Arthur. We’ll just figure it out together. And I assure you, it’ll be good. Everything else has felt amazing.”

Arthur nods and kisses him again, hands trailing across Merlin’s body as his lips move down to Merlin’s throat. He stops just above the neckerchief, his hands moving around the back. He loosens the knot but doesn't untie it. Merlin doesn't understand until he feels Arthur's teeth lightly scrape across his skin as he takes the neckerchief between his teeth and tugs it off. The sight of Arthur with the blue neckerchief in his mouth has Merlin gasping and gripping his shoulder. 

"Arthur..."

Arthur removes the fabric from his mouth and tosses it aside. His eyes fall to Merlin's neck. He groans as he moves back in, licking and biting across the skin there. “I’ve always hated those damn neckerchiefs you wear. Skin like this should not be covered up. Except,” he sucks hard on a sensitive spot above Merlin’s collarbone causing Merlin to gasp and buck against him. “Now you might need to wear them.”

“You’ll love that, won’t you?” Merlin asks, bringing a hand up to card through Arthur’s hair. “You’ll love knowing that you’ve marked me.”

Arthur hums, placing a kiss to the mark he’s left on Merlin’s throat. Then he’s pushing gently at Merlin’s shoulders, “Roll over onto your stomach.”

Merlin looks at him for a moment before nodding. It should be uncomfortable being exposed like this but he finds he doesn’t mind it. Not with Arthur.

“God you’re gorgeous,” Arthur murmurs. He lays down on his side next to Merlin, running a hand up his thigh and between his cheeks at the same time he licks his way across one of the globes of his ass.

“Arthur,” Merlin breathes, turning his head to look back at Arthur. Arthur’s eyes meet his as nips gently at his skin.

Arthur smirks and pulls back, slapping Merlin’s ass, “On your knees.”

Merlin gives a shaky nod before moving onto his knees. He feels more exposed like this, especially when he feels Arthur moving his hands to pull his cheeks apart. Then his hands are gone and he hears Arthur feeling around for the something on the bed. It’s not until he hears something snap open that he realizes Arthur has grabbed the bottle Stiles gave him.

“You want a lot but no too much,” he hears Arthur mumble to himself. Then his voice sounds louder as he speaks to Merlin, “Hold yourself open for me Merlin.”

Merlin moves a hand back and pulls his cheeks apart as best as he can, needing his other arm to stop him from collapsing fully onto the bed. “Is this okay?”

“Perfect,” Arthur murmurs.

Merlin almost jumps at the first tentative brush of contact with his hole. He does his best to relax, knowing it will probably go easier that way. It’s just starting to hit him that Arthur fingers are going to be going inside his ass and soon something much larger. It’s a little daunting, but he has to trust Arthur to take care of him.

The first finger enters him slowly, just the tip at first as if Arthur is testing it out. He probably is. Then the finger enters bit by bit until it’s fully inside. It’s a little weird but not painful. Arthur moves it in and out a few times, allowing Merlin time to adjust to the feeling. Then he adds a second one, working them inside Merlin and scissoring them a bit. Merlin’s trying to figure out what the big deal is until the fingers brush across something inside him that has him crying out and rocking back against them. Arthur’s found his prostate.

The fingers still. “Are you alright?” Arthur asks, sounding a little panicked. “Did I hurt you? I can stop.”

Merlin reaches back and grabs Arthur’s wrist, “Don’t you dare stop.”

He has no idea how he must look but Arthur must see something in his eyes that helps put the pieces together, “Did it feel good?”

Merlin nods, attempting to rock back on Arthur’s fingers, “So good Arthur. I need you to keep going.”

When Arthur nods, Merlin moves his hand back to hold himself open. He hears a squelching sound and then there’s another finger joining the two already inside Merlin. Merlin groans at the sensation. It’s unlike anything he’s ever felt but it’s still not enough. Arthur works him open slowly, fingers working over his prostate with each stroke.

Merlin is almost sobbing from the feeling and Arthur isn’t even inside him yet, “Please Arthur. I need you inside me.”

Arthur’s fingers still and then slowly pull out, moving to rub gently down Merlin’s thighs. “Roll over.”

Merlin does as he’s told, rolling over onto his back with his head on the pillows. His heart stutters when he looks up at Arthur to see him looking as wrecked as he feels. “C’mere.”

Arthur moves quickly, leaning in to kiss Merlin at the same time Merlin moves up causing their heads to knock together. Arthur pulls back, a hand coming up to rest on his forehead. Merlin does the same but can’t help but smile, “I knew you had a hard head sire but I didn’t need a demonstration.”

“Shut up Merlin,” Arthur grumbles, but Merlin can see his lips twitching.

“This doesn’t have to be serious,” Merlin tells him, bringing a hand up to card through his hair with an easy grin. “I’m sure it will be because it is a big step but there’s no reason we can’t laugh at ourselves.”

Arthur nods, kissing Merlin soundly. “I just want it to be perfect for you.”

“It already is,” Merlin tells him, placing a kiss to his nose. “Now get down here and fuck me.”

Arthur rolls his eyes, grabbing the bottle again and opening it up. Merlin can see Arthur’s eyes on something as he strokes his hand over his cock. It’s only when he pulls away to hover over Merlin, lining his cock up at his entrance that Merlin realizes he was reading the piece of parchment attached to the bottle.

Merlin chuckles, “Have you been…?”

Merlin’s laughter dies in his throat when Arthur slowly starts to push into him. He doesn’t realize he’s stopped breathing until Arthur’s voice sounds close to his ear, “Breathe Merlin. We can’t have to passing out before I’ve even gotten started.”

His words are teasing but Merlin can tell from the tense set to his jaw that he’s holding back, “Sorry. It’s just… a lot. It feels…”

He stops, biting his lip to stop the words from pouring out. Arthur moves forward, kissing him hard until Merlin is staring bleary eyed up at him. Arthur pulls back until he’s almost completely out of Merlin before slowly guiding himself back in.

“How does it feel?” Arthur rasps. Merlin closes his eyes only to have Arthur grip his chin, his words coming out frantic, “No Merlin. I need you to look at me. I need to see your eyes.”

Merlin slowly opens his eyes and Arthur smiles, rolling his hips against Merlin. Merlin has to fight to keep his eyes open, the feeling of Arthur moving inside of him almost too much. “How do you feel Merlin?”

Merlin doesn’t miss the fact that Arthur went from asking how it feels to how Merlin himself feels. It’s a little hard to describe, especially when Arthur is moving so deliciously inside of him. He does his best, driven by the urge to please his king.

“I feel full,” Merlin moans, rocking his hips down to meet Arthur’s thrusts. “So full. Arthur you feel so good moving inside me. So hot and heavy and amazing. It’s too much but not enough.”

Arthur groans, burying his face in Merlin’s neck as he continues to rock against him. He pulls back, eyes searching Merlin’s face, “Merlin you have no idea how you feel right now. You’re so tight and perfect. It’s like you were made to take my cock.”

Merlin moans, pulling Arthur down for a kiss. Neither one of them can keep the smiles off their faces.

Arthur rolls his hips languidly, easing his cock slowly into and out of Merlin, again and again. All the while he’s kissing Merlin softly, his hands moving almost reverently across Merlin’s skin. It’s all so soft and gentle it makes Merlin want to cry.

“Shhh,” Arthur whispers, hand coming up to brush across Merlin’s cheek, “I’ve got you.”

Merlin can only nod, not quite trusting his voice. He tries to show what he’s feeling instead. He pulls Arthur down for another kiss, trying to put all the love he feels for his king into a simple glide of lips. Arthur’s eyes are wet when he pulls back, only far enough to rest their foreheads together. It’s all so much, for both of them.

“You can go faster,” Merlin tells him, raking his nails down Arthur’s back. “I can take it.”

Arthur nods, placing a kiss to Merlin’s lips. He’s confused when he feels Arthur almost pulling out completely, but then he’s slamming back in. He does it again and again and again, his hips working furiously as he drives into Merlin. Merlin can only moan and hold onto the headboard with one hand as he tries to rock down and meet Arthur thrust for thrust.

Then Arthur finds his prostate and starts hitting that sweet spot with each thrust. Merlin can feeling the tightening in his gut, signaling his impending release. “I’m close sire.”

Merlin whines when suddenly Arthur is pulling out of him. He doesn’t get to question it for long because then Arthur is at his side, hand working furiously over his cock as he comes with a shout of Merlin’s name, hot sticky fluid coating Merlin’s chest and stomach.

“Did you just come from me calling you sire in bed?” Merlin asks, torn between being amused and turned on.

“Shut up Merlin,” Arthur grumbles.

Then he’s moving his hand down to grip Merlin’s cock and any complaint Merlin has dies in his throat. All he can do is moan and watch as Arthur’s hand works over his cock. What does him in is seeing the way Arthur is watching himself bring Merlin off. His eyes are glazed and his tongue comes out to wet his lips.

“So perfect,” he whispers, his hand still working fast over Merlin’s cock. “So hard for me Merlin. Just waiting to come.”

“Fuck Arthur,” Merlin gasps, gripping the sheets tight.

Arthur’s eyes snap up to meet his, his voice low and slightly hoarse when he speaks. “Come for me Merlin.”

Merlin feels like the breath has been knocked out of him as his orgasm hits him fast and hard. “Arthur!”

Arthur continues working his hand over Merlin’s cock, milking out the last few drops of cum. Merlin feels a little dazed and like he’s floating. He feels his cock give a valiant twitch when Arthur brings his hand up and licks off the drops of cum coating his hand and fingers.

Arthur smirks when he catches Merlin watching, “I can taste us both together. Want a taste?”

Merlin nods, expecting Arthur to hold his hand out to Merlin. Instead he’s crawling on top of him and kissing him. Merlin moans when Arthur slips his tongue into his mouth and he’s able to taste himself and Arthur on him.

“Wow,” Merlin breathes, staring up at the canopy above his head as he tries to get his breathing under control.

He looks up when he hears a huff of laughter to see Arthur smiling down at him. It’s soft and fond and so full of love that it takes his breath away. He brings his hand up, pushing the sweaty strands of hair from Arthur’s face, “I love you.”

Arthur’s smile widens as he takes Merlin’s hand and brings it to his lips, “I love you too.”

He kisses Merlin again, stroking his face reverently. Then Arthur is rolling off of him and moving across the room. Merlin doesn’t feel the least bit ashamed when he watches him walk away. He’s seen Arthur naked more times than he can count. It comes with the job. But this is different. This time he’s allowed to look.

“Like what you see?” Arthur asks, turning back and walking towards the bed.

Merlin rolls his eyes, “You know I do.”

“I know,” Arthur grins and sits on the edge of the bed, taking the damp cloth and cleaning the drying cum from Merlin’s stomach. He looks up at Merlin with fondness in his eyes, “I like what I see too. Because you’re finally letting me see all of you. Aren’t you?”

Merlin knows what he’s asking. He takes a deep breath, closing his eyes as he lets his power come to the surface. When he opens them they’re glowing gold. Arthur just smiles, bringing a hand up to his cheek. “Perfect,” he kisses the corner of each of Merlin’s eyes. “So perfect. And beautiful.”

Merlin grabs the cloth and throws it aside and then pulls Arthur down into the bed beside him. He uses his magic to pull the blankets up around them, earning a snort from Arthur. “Shut up. It’s easier.”

“I wasn’t complaining,” Arthur tells him, putting an arm around Merlin’s shoulders.

Merlin sighs and sinks into his hold, resting his head on Arthur’s chest. He knows the risk of staying in here but Arthur doesn’t seem all that worried.

“Shouldn’t I be leaving?” Merlin asks, keeping his eyes on the wall.

“No,” Arthur says, voice firm. “You’re exactly where you’re supposed to be.”

Merlin smiles, placing a kiss to Arthur’s chest right over his heart. He falls asleep easier that night than he has in a long time, safe and content in Arthur’s arms.

In the distance, a wolf howls out a warning. There is a darkness approaching the gates of Camelot threatening to destroy the city and anyone in it. He just hopes someone inside is smart enough to listen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Kudos/Comments make my day. Let me know what you think or if there's anything you'd like to see. I have major plot ideas figured out but I'm always open to suggestions (:  
> [My tumblr](http://tabbytabbytabby.tumblr.com/)


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow okay. It's been a minute. But here I am with an update. Sorry about the wait if anyone is still sticking with this. Hopefully the next one won't take near as long.

Derek wakes up with a start. He feels a familiar fear clutching at him. One he’s come to associate with nightmares. But this wasn’t a nightmare. This was real.

Beside him, Stiles stirs, but he doesn’t open his eyes. “What is it?”

“I thought I heard something,” Derek tells him. “A howl.”

“Just a wolf,” Stiles mumbles. “Now go back to sleep.”

“Stiles, there aren’t any wolves here,” Derek reminds him.

Stiles’ eyes snap open. They look to the window when another howl sounds. “I don’t suppose that’s Liam or Cora, is it?”

Derek shakes his head, “No. It’s Peter.”

Stiles sighs, “You’re sure?”

“Positive.”

“And what’s all the ruckus about?”

“I think he’s trying to warn us,” Derek says.

“About what?”

Derek frowns, “I don’t know. But we need to figure it out.”

Stiles yawns, “Are we going to be able to do that tonight?”

“No.”

“Then sleep. You’ll be able to focus more once you’re rested.”

Derek nods. Stiles settles against his side with a sigh. Derek tries to let himself relax, but his mind won’t stop working. No matter how much he wishes it would.

* * *

 

Derek is restless all morning. He knows the others can tell. Cora and Theo keep shooting him worried glances. But none of them ask. They all know it’s a risk given their environment.

“You’re all awfully quiet,” Arthur comments. His eyes land on Derek. “And they’re looking at you. Is everything alright?”

“Fine,” Derek says. “I just didn’t sleep much last night.”

Liam smirks, “I wonder why.”

Stiles throws a slice of ham at him, “At least we’re not being emotionally repressed.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Liam says.

Jenna sighs and pats Liam’s hand, “Oh sweetheart.”

“I’m not the emotionally repressed one,” Liam mutters. His eyes move to Theo for a moment before going back to his food.

“And for the record,” Stiles says. “I had nothing to do with Derek not being able to sleep. It was…”

Derek squeezes his hand in warning, and Stiles falls silent, allowing Derek to fill the gap. “I just have a lot on my mind.”

Arthur nods, “I understand the feeling. If there is anything you need, please let us know. I’m sure Gaius would be happy to provide you with a sleeping draught.”

“I appreciate the thought Sire, but I’m not one that takes things to help me sleep.”

He doesn’t say it’s because he still feels like he needs to be ready to wake up at a moments notice. Even here the threat of danger is a real one.

“Of course. If I might suggest a warm bath and a massage? Both do wonders to help me sleep.”

“I’m surprised the sex isn’t doing it,” Lydia mutters.

Derek shoots her a glare before turning back to Arthur, “That sounds like an excellent idea, Arthur. I’ll have to try it.”

Arthur smiles kindly, “I’ve never felt more relaxed than when I’ve had one of Merlin’s massages. I’m sure Stiles can be of assistance to you.”

He winks, and John coughs. Jenna rubs his back, and smiles. Next to him, Stiles looks over at Derek with a smirk. “I am good with my hands.”

Derek shakes his head, “Eat your food, Stiles. I want to go riding after breakfast.”

Stiles groans, “That is not any incentive to get me to eat faster.”

“I’ll go,” Cora tells him. “I’ve been wanting to spend some time outside the castle. Lydia?”

“That does sound lovely,” Lydia says. She meets Derek’s eyes from across the table. “If you don’t mind, of course.”

“I’d love the company,” Derek tells them.

“If you’d like a couple of the knights can ride with you,” Arthur offers.

Derek is tempted to say no. He has plans for being outside the castle, and if they run into Peter…

But he knows they have to keep their cover. And that means accepting Arthur’s offer. “That would be great. Thank you.”

Arthur nods, “I’m sure Gwaine and Lancelot wouldn’t mind some fresh air.”

“Because we don’t get any of that when we’re training,” Gwaine says.

Lancelot shakes his head, “I’m sure this will be much more relaxing, Gwaine.”

“But if you’d rather stay and train…” Arthur says.

Gwaine stands up abruptly, “I’ll go get the horses ready, shall I?”

He leaves the room without another word. Merlin snorts, “He’ll do anything to get out of work.”

“Something I’m sure you can relate to,” Arthur says.

“I work!”

“Sure you do. When you’re not in the tavern.”

“I’m never in the tavern,” Merlin mutters.

Arthur smiles fondly at him. Derek watches as his hand disappears under the table, and Merlin relaxes. His quiet “I know” is missed by everyone else.

* * *

 

“So what exactly are we doing?” Cora asks. She’s standing with her arms crossed as she leans against one of the pillars.

“Going for a ride,” Derek says. He takes the bag packed with water and food that Stiles hands him.

“Oblivious,” Cora says. Derek doesn’t have to look at her to know she’s rolling her eyes. “But _why_? I know this isn’t some desire to see nature.”

“I like nature.”

It’s not a lie. He does like it. Especially here. He likes how untouched everything is. It’s one of the things he’s going to miss most when they get back to their time.

“But this is more than that, isn’t it?” Lydia asks him.

“It is,” Derek says, turning to face them. “I’m hoping to catch Peter’s trail.”

“In the middle of the day?” Cora asks. “With Gwaine and Lancelot with us?”

“Gwaine knows the truth,” Stiles says. “And Lancelot knows about Merlin’s magic, so he’d be understanding. But are you really sure you want to go after Peter?”

“I’m not sure about anything right now,” Derek sighs. “All I know is I can’t just sit here. But if you two don’t want to come…”

“I’m not letting you go after him alone,” Cora says. “He’s my uncle too. I want to know what’s going on as much as you do. And since you seem to have no problem leaving me out of everything…”

“Not on purpose.”

“I know,” Cora says. “But I’ve been keeping myself busy enough. While you all have been chasing after monsters, Lydia and I have been keeping Jenna and John occupied.”

“How is my dad?” Stiles asks her.

“He’s still a little shocked by all of this,” Lydia says. “But he’s calmed down enough. He’s starting to appreciate that he is in King Arthur’s court. Jenna’s excitement helps, I think.”

“I should be checking in more,” Stiles says.

“He understands, Stiles,” Lydia says.

“I know. I think I’ll go check in on him while you’re all gone. Get in some good old father son bonding time.”

“Maybe he can teach you how to ride a horse,” Derek teases.

“I did perfectly fine on a horse, thank you.”

“Of course you did, Stiles,” Lydia says, her tone placating. “But I do think it’s a good idea to go see your father. It might help to have you around.”

Stiles nods. He leans in and kisses Derek softly. His hand rests on his cheek as he looks at him, “Be careful.”

Derek’s hand comes up to rest over Stiles’, “Always.”

Stiles kisses him again, before moving back. “I’ll see you all when you get back.”

He leaves the room, and Derek turns to Lydia and Cora. “Ready?”

Cora nods, “Let’s do this.”

Gwaine and Lancelot are waiting for them when they get outside. There are three horses with them.

“I was wondering if you three were going to make it,” Gwaine says. “We were about to send out a search party.”

“Derek had to say goodbye to Stiles,” Lydia tells him. She easily climbs up on her horse, and shoots Gwaine and Lancelot a smile. “Stiles likes to worry.”

Gwaine nods seriously, “I can see that in him.”

“He does remind me a little bit of Merlin in that regard,” Lancelot muses.

Derek straps the bag to his horse, pleased to find it’s the same one he rode on their previous outing, before climbing on. “Are we ready?”

“Let’s go see what sort of trouble we can get into,” Gwaine says, steering his horse towards the castle gates.

“We’re just going for a ride, Gwaine,” Lancelot reminds him.

“Yes, but there are taverns everywhere,” Gwaine says.

“No taverns,” Lancelot says.

Gwaine sighs, “If you say so. But a good glass of ale is nice after a long ride.”

“You can drink when we get back.”

“I’ve been temporarily banned from the tavern.”

“Why?” Cora asks.

“There are some things that shouldn’t be repeated in front of a lady,” Gwaine says.

“I assure you I’ve probably heard worse,” Cora says. Derek has no doubt she’s right.

“He got drunk and sang a song about his favorite part of Percival,” Lancelot tells them. “And it wasn’t his heart.”

Derek grins, “I see.”

“It was his arms!” Gwaine says, indignantly. “And all a misunderstanding.”

“I’m sure it was,” Derek says.

“Don’t let Lance fool you,” Gwaine says. “He once got drunk and stood outside Guinevere’s house yelling poetry at her that he made up himself until she opened the door.”

“Didn’t someone say Stiles did something similar?” Lancelot asks.

“He did,” Cora says, a grin forming on her lips. “He sang one of Derek’s favorite songs to him from the tree outside his window. And then fell out. He’s just lucky Derek had already come outside to see him otherwise he probably would have broken his neck.”

“Stiles is lucky to have you around,” Gwaine says. “It is nice to see that while you are from a different time, some of the traditions are still the same.”

“Yes, people still make fools of themselves when it comes to love,” Lydia says.

Derek shoots a glance at Lancelot, to see he doesn’t look the least bit phased by Gwaine’s comment. He gives Derek a kind smile. “No one told me,” he assures him. “But I had my suspicions. Some of the things you and your friends would say were a little out there. So it makes sense.”

“I’m glad it makes sense to you,” Cora says. “I’m still trying to wrap my head around this whole thing. And it’s like the more we find out, the more confusing it gets.”

“Hopefully you’ll have the answers you need soon,” Lancelot says.

“I hope so too,” Derek says. His eyes move to the trees. There hasn’t been any sign of Peter. Not even tracks on the ground that look like wolf prints. It’s as if he’s just vanished. But Derek knows he hasn’t. He’s somewhere out here. Trapped and half-feral and alone. He might have his issues with Peter but he’s still worried.

“We’re going to figure this out,” Lydia tells him.

All Derek can do is nod.

* * *

 

They don’t get back to the castle until close to dinner. The ride around the forest hadn’t turned up anything. Derek is sore and tired and could really use one of those baths Arthur was talking about.

He walks into his chambers, shucking off his jacket and then his boots. He stills when he sees his tub sitting in the middle of the room. The water is steaming, and Stiles is inside. He smiles at Derek.

“I heard you were back and wanted to surprise you,” he says.

Derek’s shoulders sag in relief. He quickly undresses and makes his way to the tub. Stiles spreads his legs enough for Derek to settle between them, with his back to Stiles’ chest. Stiles brings a washcloth up and runs it across Derek’s chest.

He places a kiss to his shoulder, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Derek says, letting his head fall back to rest against Stiles’ shoulder. “I’m just tired. It was a long day. And we didn’t find anything.”

Stiles hums and continues to run the washcloth against his skin, “No news is good news, I suppose. There haven’t been any sightings anywhere. Maybe he’s lying low.”

“I hope so,” Derek says. “But I’m still worried.”

“You want to tell Arthur and Merlin, don’t you?”

“I think it would help if they knew. Merlin at least has some idea, but Arthur… He knows about Merlin’s magic. He deserves to know the truth about what’s happening in his kingdom.”

“You know what I find odd here,” Stiles says.

“What is it?”

“Morgana. No one has said anything about her. At least not more than whispers. Lydia told me she used to live here, and Gwen was her servant. They were friends. But then something happened.”

“What?” Derek asks.

“I don’t know,” Stiles sighs. “But I have a feeling this might be tied to her somehow.”

“Do you think she cursed Peter?”

“I don’t see why she would,” Stiles says. “But it’s possible. I hate that there are so many unknowns here.”

“Me too,” Derek sighs. “Which is why we need to talk to Arthur and Merlin. We need all the help we can get in changing Peter back.”

After their bath, Derek and Stiles head into the hall, prepared to go find Arthur. Derek’s surprised to find Cora and Theo there, waiting.

“What’s going on?” Derek asks them.

“I figured after today you were going to want to talk to Arthur,” Cora says. “And I wasn’t about to be left out this time. Everyone else wanted to come as well but we figured it might be better in a smaller group.”

“So they sent Theo?” Stiles asks.

“Merlin likes me,” Theo shrugs.

Derek can’t argue with that. “Okay. But let me do the talking.”

Cora shrugs, “Whatever you say King Derek.”

Derek rolls his eyes. He heads down the hall with Stiles by his side and Cora and Theo trailing after them. Merlin answers the door to Arthur’s chambers when Derek knocks, and doesn’t look the least bit surprised to see them standing there.

“I was wondering when you’d show up,” Merlin says.

He steps aside to let them in. Arthur is leaning over his desk, looking over some papers. He looks up when they enter, and smiles, stepping around the desk. “Derek. Stiles. Cora. Theo. What can I do for you?”

“There are some things I think you should know,” Derek says.

“I see.”

Derek really doesn’t want to get into the whole time travel thing. At least not yet. He figures it’s best to stick to the most important details, and right now, that’s Peter.

Cora nudges Derek’s arm with her elbow, and nods her head towards Arthur, telling him silently to get on with it.

“So here’s the thing. The beast? It’s my uncle Peter,” Derek says with a grimace. Apparently there wasn’t going to be a build up.

Merlin’s mouth falls open in shock as he’s rendered momentarily speechless. Arthur just looks confused, “Excuse me? Did you just say that your uncle…”

“Is the beast you think is terrorizing your kingdom, yes.”

Arthur laughs, his head thrown back as he clutches his stomach. When he’s done he points at Derek, a grin still on his face, “Now that was a good one.”

“I wasn’t kidding, Arthur,” Derek tells him.

Arthur’s smile drops, “You’re serious?” Derek nods. “But how?”

“Well that is a long story that I don’t have all the answers to. All I know is that that’s my uncle trapped in his wolf form. I have no idea why or how long he’s been like that. The only way to find out is to talk to him. To do that we need to bring him back.”

“Back to being human?” Arthur asks, still not looking convinced. “And you said trapped in _his_ wolf form. Not trapped as a wolf. As in someone transformed him.”

Derek shares a look with Stiles, Theo, and Cora. They all nod. He takes a deep breath before turning back to the thing. Merlin is next to him, his face a mixture of wariness and curiosity.

“As I said, it’s a long story,” Derek says.

“One I should be sitting down for?” When Derek nods, Arthur sighs and takes a seat at the table, waving his hand towards the other empty seats. “You all might as well join me. And some mead might help. Merlin?”

“I’d love some mead,” Merlin says. “Not that you were offering me any, of course.”

Arthur fondly rolls his eyes, “I have a feeling we’ll all be needing some by the end of this conversation.”

Theo snorts, “You might need the whole bottle.”

“You’re not helping,” Cora hisses.

Theo shrugs, “Am I wrong?”

“Putting up with you makes me wish I could get drunk,” Cora says.

“You can’t get drunk?” Merlin asks.

“None of us can,” Derek says. “Except for Stiles, John, Lydia, and Jenna.”

“And why are they so different from you?” Arthur inquires.

“Because they’re human.”

Neither Arthur nor Merlin visibly react. They just stare at Derek for a moment. Finally. Arthur picks up his glass and downs it in one go before lowering it again. “And you’re not?”

“No, we’re not. We’re werewolves,” Derek tells him. “I’d show you but we might need to work up to that.”

“And Peter?” Arthur asks. “He’s a werewolf too?”

Derek nods, “He is. Something must have happened to get him trapped in his wolf form. And unfortunately the only person with the answer to that is Peter.”

“How are we supposed to get him changed back?” Merlin asks.

“And do we even want to get him back?” Stiles asks.

“Is there a reason we wouldn’t?” Arthur asks, eyeing the two curiously.

Stiles opens his mouth, but Derek puts a hand on his shoulder, giving him a long look. He turns back to Arthur, “Peter is complicated. But I do believe it would be in our best interest to get him changed back. We need to know why he was changed. Whoever did it wasn’t doing it for a good reason. I know that much. And they could be a danger not only to Peter, but others as well.”

“Well then,” Arthur says. “Let's figure out a way to get your uncle back.”

“ _Make the beast remember who he is,_ ” Merlin says.

“What?” Derek asks, looking at him in confusion.

“It’s something the dragon told us,” Stiles says. “But I don’t get it. Peter obviously knows he’s Peter.”

“It’s has to be more than that,” Derek says. “Something bigger.”

They just have to figure out what.

* * *

 

The moon is shining brightly overhead when they enter the forest. Derek doesn’t know where to start, as they make their way through the trees. His feet take him down a path, one that seems familiar to him. It’s not until they reach the clearing where he last saw Peter that he understands why.

“Do you think he’ll come back here?” Stiles asks him, his eyes scanning the trees around them.

“I don’t know,” Derek admits. “But he has to know we’re looking for him. So hopefully he’ll find us.”

“He’s probably been following us this whole time,” Stiles mutters. “And is just being his usual asshole self.”

“I would have noticed,” Derek tells him.

Stiles shrugs, not seeming convinced.

Derek looks around to see the others all lounging on the grass. They seem relaxed out here. It’s a nice night. All the stars are clearly visible and there’s a nice breeze blowing through. He’d appreciate it more if he wasn’t so worried.

“Do you want to sit down?” Stiles asks him.

“No.”

“What are you even going to do once he gets here? If he gets here?”

“He will,” Derek says. “And then… I don’t know. I’ll figure it out.”

A branch snaps nearby and Derek’s head turns in that direction. His eyes glow red as he looks out into the darkness. A moment later a wolf appears, walking slowly into the clearing. It’s Peter.

He sits down a few feet away and tilts his head as he studies him.

“Peter,” Derek says. He keeps his eyes on him, hoping to see some recognition there. He takes a step towards him, and Peter growls, baring his fangs and his eyes glow blue. “Peter? It’s me. It’s Derek.”

He remembers the last time they saw each other. How Peter just needed to smell him. He holds out his hand, letting it hover in the air between them. Peter moves closer, not taking his eyes off Derek as he sniffs at his hand.

All he does is sit down again and stare. But he’s no longer growling.

“What are we supposed to do?” Derek asks, turning his head to look at Cora.

“Make him remember,” Cora says. “But how?”

“I had an idea, actually,” Stiles says. He pulls something out of his boot and hands it to Derek. A cell phone.

“How did you get this?” Derek asks him.

“I was thinking about how it would be helpful to have it, even if we can’t get service or power to charge it, and it appeared on your desk.”

“What are we supposed to do with it?”

“Pictures Der,” Stiles says. “There are pictures.”

Derek’s eyes widen.

He unlocks the phone and pulls up the gallery. He moves to kneel next to Peter and turns the phone screen towards him. “This is you, Peter.” He flips to a different picture. “And this is you, me, and Cora on our pack vacation last year. And this…” he brings up another picture. “This is of you and Malia. Your daughter.” Peter whines and nudges at the phone, and Derek looks for another picture of Malia. “Do you remember her? You have a family, Peter. You have people waiting for you back home. You have _us_. And we need your help.”

Derek jumps back when Peter is suddenly surrounded by a blinding light. He looks to the others, and they look just as startled as he is. Stiles grips his hand tightly.

“What’s happening?” he asks.

“I think he remembers,” Derek whispers back.

A shadow starts to emerge from the light, in the form of a man, before a familiar voice speaks. “I do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Kudos/Comments make my day. ♥  
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